Tour d’Argent to auction rare 18th century spirits

Iconic Paris restaurant Tour d’Argent is to sell 60 rare spirits and over 3,000 pieces of tableware and glassware at auction in May in preparation for a refit.

La Tour d’Argent

Held by auction house Articurial on 9 May, among the highlights of the sale are a bottle of 1788 Clos du Griffier Grande Fine Cognac, estimated to sell for €20,000, and a silver duck press that is due to net €4-6,000.

Also on sale will be Eaux de Vie, Cognac, Calvados, Port, Madeira and Armagnac bottled in the Tour d’Argent cellars. In addition, some 2,700 Riedel wine glasses will ago under the hammer, alongside 120 of the Michelin starred restaurant’s signature silver goblets.

Actress Anita Ekberg in the Tour a’Argent cellars

“The Tour d’Argent is continuingly evolving and the renovations we’ve undertaken have led to us accumulating a large amount of crystal, glass and silverware that no longer has a relevant place today,” said owner André Terrail.

“The sale of the collections of an iconic venue such as the Tour d’Argent is a truly exciting event. The restaurant is symbolic of an exceptional French ‘art de vivre’,” added François Tajan, deputy chairman of d’Artcurial.

Founded in 1582 on the banks of the river Seine, the Tour d’Argent is one of Paris’ oldest restaurants, which has hosted everyone from Grace Kelly and Clark Gable and Coco Chanel.

King Henri IV of France discovered the fork here in the 16th century and in the 18th century the restaurant was bought by Napoleon’s personal chef, LeCoq. One of its most famous dishes is ‘Canard à la presse’ – pressed duck, which both Thomas Rockefeller and Charlie Chaplin enjoyed when they dined there.

Overseen by longtime head sommelier David Ridgway, its wine list, one of the most revered in France and boasts over 350,000 bottles.

During World War II, the cellar was saved from German occupation by former owner Claude Terrail due to a fake wall built by restaurant staff in 1940 that hid it from view.