Sotheby’s ends year on £2.5m high

Sotheby’s fine wine department ended the year on a £2.5 million high note after a two-day sale in London.

Acclaimed in advance as the ‘sale of the decade’, the sale featured fine wines from the cellar of just one collector. Its final tally just exceeded the £2.4m pre-sale estimate and was 87.9% sold by lot and 96% by value.

The top lot was six magnums of 1989 Petrus that made £30,550, followed by a full case of 1978 Côte Rôtie La Mouline from Guigal which went for £22,325.

Three bottles of 1947 Cheval Blanc made £17,625 and seven bottles of 1961 Latour £16,450.

Stephen Mould, head of Sotheby’s Wine, Europe, commented: “We’re delighted to finish the year on a high with the best result for a London wine sale at Sotheby’s in 2015, and our highest London total in over a decade for a single-owner sale, a fitting tribute to a collection of this magnitude. This exceptional cellar featured some of the finest gems from Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhône, and the prices were reflective of its quality.

“Rare Bordeaux was hotly contested, while bidders also clamoured for vintages from the top growers of red Burgundy. Bidding reached a crescendo for rare Grand Cru white Burgundy, especially for Leflaive. The Rhône section included outstanding Côte Rôtie from Guigal, and La Mouline 1978 soared above estimate to claim the second highest price. We now look forward to our next sale in London on 27 January, preceded by our auction in Hong Kong on 23 January.”