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| Paris restaurant auctions cellar | Paris restaurant auctions cellar |
| (about 14 hours later) | |
| Wines from one of the world's most famous cellars, belonging to La Tour d'Argent restaurant in Paris, are going under the hammer. | Wines from one of the world's most famous cellars, belonging to La Tour d'Argent restaurant in Paris, are going under the hammer. |
| A total of 18,000 bottles - including wine from Cognac, Champagne, Burgundy and Bordeaux - are to be auctioned. | A total of 18,000 bottles - including wine from Cognac, Champagne, Burgundy and Bordeaux - are to be auctioned. |
| The sale is intended to raise 1m euros (£0.9m) to renew the cellar's contents and ensure the restaurant keeps its Michelin star. | |
| Its wine list is 400 pages long, with no fewer than 15,000 tipples. | Its wine list is 400 pages long, with no fewer than 15,000 tipples. |
| Andre Terrail, who runs the restaurant - the third generation of his family to do so - said he hoped to add new wines from different parts of France, including the Loire Valley, to the cellar. | Andre Terrail, who runs the restaurant - the third generation of his family to do so - said he hoped to add new wines from different parts of France, including the Loire Valley, to the cellar. |
| "It is a heritage my father contributed to and which I must pass on," Mr Terrail told Agence France Presse. | "It is a heritage my father contributed to and which I must pass on," Mr Terrail told Agence France Presse. |
| "We must keep it alive and build on it," he said of the 450,000-bottle cellar. | "We must keep it alive and build on it," he said of the 450,000-bottle cellar. |
| 'Like my children' | 'Like my children' |
| The sale has had wine fans licking their lips in anticipation - as all bottles were bought directly from the winemakers and have been kept in the cellar's careful controlled conditions, making them a low-risk investment. | The sale has had wine fans licking their lips in anticipation - as all bottles were bought directly from the winemakers and have been kept in the cellar's careful controlled conditions, making them a low-risk investment. |
| FROM THE PM PROGRAMME More from PM | FROM THE PM PROGRAMME More from PM |
| According to the auctioneers, some bottles were expected to reach 5,000 euros (£4,500), though others were more accessible at 10 euros a bottle. | According to the auctioneers, some bottles were expected to reach 5,000 euros (£4,500), though others were more accessible at 10 euros a bottle. |
| Profits from the sale of one of the dustiest bottles to go under the hammer - a 1788 cognac expected to fetch 2,500 euros (£2,259) - will be given to charity. | Profits from the sale of one of the dustiest bottles to go under the hammer - a 1788 cognac expected to fetch 2,500 euros (£2,259) - will be given to charity. |
| La Tour d'Argent's chief sommelier, David Ridgway, said he had bought most of the wines being auctioned off during his 30 years at the restaurant. | La Tour d'Argent's chief sommelier, David Ridgway, said he had bought most of the wines being auctioned off during his 30 years at the restaurant. |
| "Each bottle is a bit like one of my children: you see them go and you're always sad but at the same time they're going to make space for more, so it's a sad occasion but a happy one at the same time," he told the BBC. | "Each bottle is a bit like one of my children: you see them go and you're always sad but at the same time they're going to make space for more, so it's a sad occasion but a happy one at the same time," he told the BBC. |
| He added that the sale was going "remarkably well" despite the recession, with some bottles fetching 30% above the original estimate. | He added that the sale was going "remarkably well" despite the recession, with some bottles fetching 30% above the original estimate. |