Acker begins NY season in style

Acker Merrall & Condit began its New York season with an auction 98% sold by lot and 26% over its pre-auction estimates at US$3,766,000.

The top lot was a Jeroboam of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti 1999, which sold for US$73,200 as Burgundy and Champagne stole the show at the Marea restaurant on 3 March.

Other top lots of DRC included three magnums of 2001 Romanée-Conti for US$48,800; six bottles of La Tâche 1999 for US$24,400 and two bottles of Romanée-Conti 2005 for US$29,280.

Another impressive lot was a 120-bottle collection of 1996 Salon Le Mesnil, which sold for US$39,040 and another 120-bottle collection of 1996 Krug, which went for US$34,140.

Cases of Lafite and Pétrus 1990 also sold well, but – as with Sotheby’s and Christie’s London auctions last month – the house noted that “the auction was also distinguished by an astonishing array of the best wines from the Rhône Valley, Italy, Germany, and California.”

Top of those lots was a case of 1982 Giacosa Barbaresco Santo Stefano Riserva for US$13,420 and a case of 1997 Harlan Estate Red for US$17,080.

John Kapon, Acker Merrall’s CEO, said: “The rare wine market is always fascinating, but rarely more so than it is right now. While Burgundy remains the hottest segment of the market, there is intense interest in the great variety of wine the world has to offer, and no group is more aware of that than our New York clientele.

“Frankly, there isn’t a single one of the world’s great wine-producing regions that isn’t of interest to wine lovers right now. The across the board records we set today are proof of that statement. Consequently, there’s great vitality in the market.”

The next Acker auction will take place in Hong Kong on 30-31 March.