NEWS! Burgundy Wine Auction Realizes A Stunning $7M As Collectors Accept Record-Breaking Prices

The April 13-14 Celebration of Burgundy auction from Hart Davis Hart Wine Co. (HDH) in Chicago brought in $7.2 million. This staggering amount exceeds the previous house record for a Celebration of Burgundy auction by $1.5 million. Pre-auction estimates valued the event at $4.4-6.5 million, demonstrating highly enthusiastic collector interest in the 178 Burgundian domaines represented in the offering.

Highlights of the sale include a three-liter jeroboam of 1990 Grands-Echézeaux from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC), which sold for $26,290. DRC is a consistent head-turner, and this auction was no exception, “featuring an impressive 48 vintages dating back to 1966 and encompassing all the domaine’s Grand Cru vineyard sites,” HDH said in a statement. “The sale’s DRC offers achieved a total of $2.2 million (estimated at $1.3-2 million), claiming eight of the sale’s top 10 lots by value.”

A six-liter methuselah of 1983 La Tâche broke a world record at a price of $31,070 (estimated at $17,000 to $26,000). Also sold notably above estimate were four bottles of 2011 Corton-Charlemagne from Coche-Dury that went for $19,120 and a bottle of 1993 Musigny from Domaine Leroy for which the bidder paid $11,950.

Record-breaking prices are nothing new to the Burgundy enthusiast, with fine wines and rare vintages consistently bursting the top of the market. Interested in sourcing fine Burgundy but don’t have the wallet for auction prices? “One must delve into finding wines from lesser-known Burgundian villages, bypassing producers like DRC and investigating small producers who are not household names,” says Jerry Clark, president of Wine Maven Enterprises in Mystic, Connecticut, where he provides consultations to fine wine collectors. “Or just accept that if Premier Cru and/or Grand Cru is a requirement, then you must step up to the price levels demanded.”

Bidders ready to step up should mark their calendars and be prepared – the next HDH sale offers both European and New World wines on May 18 and 19, and online bidding starts tomorrow, April 26, at 8 a.m. Central. “Values can appear from time to time, and when they do, one has to act fast,” suggests Clark.