‘Encouraging’ claret results at Sotheby’s

Top Bordeaux and Henri Jayer led Sotheby’s latest London sale, which also featured the second tranche of ex-cellar Ornellaia.

Held on 16 March, the sale was 94% sold by lot and realised £886,820 in total and there was strong bidding for all of the fine wines on offer.

Top honours went to six magnums of 1989 Petrus, which fetched £28,200 (high estimate, £24,000), followed by five bottles of the 1986 vintage of Henri Jayer’s much sought-after Cros Parantoux which realised £19,975.

Another four bottles of Jayer’s 1990 Echézeaux made £18,800 and nine bottles of 1990 Château Rayas £7,990 (there was a particularly strong selection of Rhône at the sale).

Apart from one bottle of 2009 Romanée-Conti from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (£8,225) and a mixed 10-bottle case also from 2009, the majority of best-selling lots were Bordeaux.

A case of a current hot-favourite, 2000 Mouton Rothschild, made £12,925, another case of 1989 Haut-Brion £12,338, a bottle of 1945 Mouton £8,640 and six magnums of 1990 Cheval Blanc realised £7,638.

The sale featured the second tranche of wines direct from the cellar of Ornellaia. Although Sotheby’s reported “high prices” for the 2001 and 2006 vintages, just as in New York where the ‘Archivio Storico’ debuted, however it is clear that the collection was not 100% sold, with many lots selling comfortable within their low and high estimates.

Stephen Mould, head of Sotheby’s Wine, Europe, said: “It was encouraging to see strong interest across the board for young vintages of Classed Growth Bordeaux ahead of the en primeur campaign next month, while connoisseurs were attracted by the offering of Ornellaia’s library wines direct from the Tuscan estate, which resulted in high prices for the 2001 and 2006 vintages.

“Elsewhere, collectors snapped up an array of Mouton Rothschild vintages, Champagne, particularly Dom Pérignon, and Rhône wines from Château Rayas and Hermitage La Chapelle. Burgundy from Henri Jayer and de Vogüé was similarly in demand. The next sale, on 2^nd April in Hong Kong, is the final auction in Sotheby’s Ornellaia Archivio Storico series.”