Sotheby’s first wine and spirits sale in Geneva achieved CHF 573,500 (US $630,844), with the top lots dominated by a 16-lot collection of bottles of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC). The sale, which is the first time a wine and spirits sale has been held in the Swiss capital, despite offering wine sales for fifty years, first in London, then New York, Hong Kong and more recently in France, was 91% sold by lot, with 64% of the lots sold achieving prices above their high estimates. Bidders came from 14 countries, across Europe, North America, Asia and beyond, including several first-time buyers from those regions. The sale comprised 43 lots and included many Classed Growth Bordeaux and Burgundy and magnums, which performed particularly well, Sotheby’s noted. A spokesman said that most of the wine lots, particularly the mature Bordeaux and rare Burgundy, fetched prices two to three times above their low estimates, “underscoring the strong interest of international collectors for such rare wines”. This, he continued not only highlights the “scarcity and desirability of these collectible wines and legendary vintages but also reaffirms that provenance and authentication are paramount for Sotheby’s and [its]clients, both sellers and buyers”. The top lot was a trio of magnums of 1971 La Tâche, which more than doubled their low pre-sale estimate (CHF60,000 – 75,000) to sell for CHF 125,000 Swiss francs (£110,000), while three individual magnums of 1971 La Tâche also sold for CHF32,500, CHF27,500 and CHF18,750. Three magnums from the 1976 vintage
This Article was originally published on The Drink Business - Fine Wine
