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Hong Kong auction breaks record for most expensive wine Hong Kong auction breaks record for most expensive wine
(about 1 hour later)
An auction in Hong Kong has broken the world record for the most expensive lot of wine ever sold, with 114 bottles of Burgundy going for HK$12,556,250 (£1m, or $1.6m), Sotheby’s has said.An auction in Hong Kong has broken the world record for the most expensive lot of wine ever sold, with 114 bottles of Burgundy going for HK$12,556,250 (£1m, or $1.6m), Sotheby’s has said.
The auction house said a collection of Romanee-Conti, one of the world’s most sought after Burgundy labels, sold for the equivalent of $14,121 for each bottle or $1,700 per glass. The auction house said a collection of Romanee-Conti, one of the world’s most sought after Burgundy labels, sold for the equivalent of $14,121 for each bottle or $1,700 per glass. The lot contained six bottles of each of the 19 vintages made from 1992 to 2010.
The lot contained six bottles of each of the 19 vintages made from 1992 to 2010.
The previous record for a single lot of wine – also held by Sotheby’s – was $1.05m for 50 cases of top Bordeaux Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1982, sold in New York in 2006.The previous record for a single lot of wine – also held by Sotheby’s – was $1.05m for 50 cases of top Bordeaux Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1982, sold in New York in 2006.
“The Romanee-Conti superlot presented a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire an unprecedented quantity of the world’s most desirable wine,” Robert Sleigh, head of Sotheby’s Wine in Asia, said in a press release. “The Romanee-Conti superlot presented a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire an unprecedented quantity of the world’s most desirable wine,” Robert Sleigh, head of Sotheby’s Wine in Asia, said in a press release. “It is only fitting that it has broken the world record to become the most valuable single wine lot ever sold at auction.”
“It is only fitting that it has broken the world record to become the most valuable single wine lot ever sold at auction.” A 66-magnum collection of Henri Jayer, owned by the Silicon Valley magnate and Netscape founder James Clark, sold for $1.1m, or $16,000 per magnum. Sotheby’s did not reveal who acquired either lot.
A 66-magnum collection of Henri Jayer, owned by the Silicon Valley magnate and Netscape founder James Clark, also sold for $1.1m, or $16,000 per magnum.
Sotheby’s did not reveal who acquired either lot.
The record sales come despite a much publicised anti-corruption campaign and separate austerity drive by the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, which has hit luxury goods and vintage wine sales in Hong Kong hard.The record sales come despite a much publicised anti-corruption campaign and separate austerity drive by the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, which has hit luxury goods and vintage wine sales in Hong Kong hard.
According to a survey by Vinexpo Asia Pacific, mainland China’s wine consumption fell by 2.5% last year, after 10 years of uninterrupted growth at a rate of 25% per year.According to a survey by Vinexpo Asia Pacific, mainland China’s wine consumption fell by 2.5% last year, after 10 years of uninterrupted growth at a rate of 25% per year.
In 2013, China overtook France as the world’s largest consumer of red wine, drinking more than 155m nine-litre cases or 1.865bn bottles that year, according to Vinexpo. But the official austerity drive in China has meant that people are increasingly turning to cheaper wines.In 2013, China overtook France as the world’s largest consumer of red wine, drinking more than 155m nine-litre cases or 1.865bn bottles that year, according to Vinexpo. But the official austerity drive in China has meant that people are increasingly turning to cheaper wines.