Hospices de Beaune Charity Auction

Auction Napa Valley might be the big thing here in the States but in France Hospices de Beaune auction is the charity wine auction to watch. This year is the145th Hospices de Beaune wine auction, which takes place on November 20. Christie's is serving as the auctioneer for the first time and they have a piece on the history of this auction. The event is part of Burgundy's  annual celebration, known as the Trois Glorieuses and draws people from all around to the beautifully unique building shown here. This year there will be two Hospices de Beaune charity wine auctions, with the new one taking place on November 19. The Hospices de Beaune has agreed to release a limited number of magnums and bottles from its private reserves for the first auction so it's a chance to pick up bottled wines that have never appeared at auction before. Traditionally the wines are auctioned by the barrel to local negoicants and the  tending of the young wines in barrel and their bottling, 12-24 months after the sale, takes place locally.  Now bidders can go through Christie's but the aging and bottling must still be done in Burgundy. It's hoped that this new strategy might boost the prices. As Decanter notes, Burgundy hasn't been as afflicted by the French wine crisis, but the auction is still a key indicator of Burgundy prices.