Leading the auction is a large format Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tache—a bottle of its kind has only been offered once before at auction, selling for $90k
October 6th – MARLBOROUGH, MA – Bonhams Skinner is pleased to announce an upcoming, online sale of fine wines and rare spirits, taking place October 17-27, 2022. This auction will offer hundreds of bottles of wine, with something for every wine lover, including a reminder that the bottle in your basement might be worth a lot more than you think. Two bottles from the Romanee-Conti vineyard in Burgundy, France will be offered, presenting a uniquely rare moment for buyers to acquire large formats of these exceptionally difficult-to-find wines, often referred to as one of the greatest wines in the world.
The highlight of this auction is a 3-liter 1971 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti La Tache, estimated to sell for $60,000-$90,000.Consigned by a distinguished gentleman living in San Francisco who bought the bottle for $325 in 1979, this large-format bottle holds four bottles in one and is exceptionally rare— there has only been one other bottle sold of its kind, selling for $90,000 in 2021. In the 1970s, French wines were not as sought after as they are now, and this gentleman was ahead of the curve when it came to wine collecting, often buying large format bottles from top producers, such as Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Chateau Mouton Rothschild and others.
The gentleman bought the 1971 bottle with hopes to present it at his son’s wedding, but when the wedding came along, he knew the bottle was too expensive to drink and his son preferred beer. With hopes to sell the bottle for around $20,000 the man called Louis Kreiger, Director of Fine Wine at Bonhams Skinner, and was shocked to find out his bottle was worth over three times as much as he thought.
An additional bottle, a 1969 Magnum of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Romanee-Conti, estimated at $30,000-$40,000 will be offered at the auction as well. Much like the San Francisco collector—who was surprised by the value of his bottle—the owners of this bottle, a young couple from Utah, were delighted to find out the bottle’s high estimate after discovering it in their mother’s extensive and impressive wine cellar. Following their mother’s passing, this wine cellar and the wine inside it was passed down to the family to enjoy and look after. The young couple knew nothing about wine and didn’t have a clue what the worth of some of these bottles were. They hope to continue their mother’s legacy by extending the life of this bottle, to be cherished by many wine lovers to come.
The provenance, storage conditions and care that these bottles have received is especially rare. The perfect care given to these bottles, a testament to their elite storage conditions, is evidenced by their high fill levels, beautiful labels and, in the case of the 1979 La Tache, original wooden case. Both bottles have been stored in professionally designed, temperature and humidity controlled in-house wine cellars and have not been moved from the time they were purchased until they were physically removed from the cellars for this sale.
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