chateau haut-brion

Wine 'Superlot' Sells For $320,000

One bidder at Skinner's recent wine sale on November 2 basically bought a wine cellar's worth of wine in one swoop of the auction paddle. The Bordeaux wine 'superlot' was comprised of 50 cases of wine including 10 cases of Chateau Haut Brion 1995-2004; 10 cases Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1995-2004; 10 cases of Chateau Latour 1995-2004; 10 cases of Chateau Margaux 1995-2004 and 10 cases of Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1995-2004. The first growth Bordeaux are basically the blue chip stocks of the wine world making this an easy investment for someone interested in filling a wine cellar very quickly with some of the most famous brands. The estimate for the lot was $200,000-300,000. It sold for $320,000.

[via Paul Fraser Collectibles]

Tags: auction, bordeaux, bordeaux wine, chateau haut-brion, chateau lafite, chateau latour, chateau margaux, chateau mouton rothschild, superlot, wine

Chateau Haut-Brion's Prince Robert of Luxembourg's Latest Venture

by Carrie Coolidge (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Prince Robert of Luxembourg, managing director of Domaine Clarence Dillon

Prince Robert of Luxembourg, the 42 year old managing director of Domaine Clarence Dillon, oversees, and owns along with his family, two of the most prestigious Premier Grand Cru estates in Bordeaux: Chateau Haut-Brion and Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion. The Prince sat down with Luxist to discuss his strategy to expand his family's business by producing a more affordable wine on a larger scale. His newest creation is "Clarendelle", which he hopes will be the first super premium-branded Bordeaux wine.

Named in honor of his maternal great-grandfather, Clarence Dillon, a New York banker who bought Chateau Haut-Brion in 1935, Clarendelle is offered at a lower price point than the wines produced by the Prince's well known estates---$15 to $25 a bottle compared to well over $300 a bottle for Chateau Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion. Domaine Clarence Dillon is able to accomplish that by buying wine from dozens of other Bordeaux winemakers and blending it together. Only a small portion of the wine comes from the Domaine Clarence Dillon estates.

Gallery: Domaine Clarence Dillion

Luxist: Tell us why you are buying wine from other Bordeaux winemakers, rather than grapes?

Prince Robert: There's a great advantage to buying wine, rather than grapes. Buying wine gives us more quality control because we already have a finished product. We are not buying grapes because we would not know how they will evolve. The wines that are purchased for Clarendelle, represents the same grape varietals used for the Chateau Haut-Brion and Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion wines.

Tags: bordeaux, bordeaux wine, Chateau Haut-Brion, Clarence Dillon Wines, Clarendelle, Haut-Brion, La Mission Haut-Brion, luxist-awards, Prince Robert, Prince Robert of Luxembourg, wine

Continue reading “Chateau Haut-Brion's Prince Robert of Luxembourg's Latest Venture”

The Million Dollar Wine Cabinet

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Wine

The Antique Wine Company has announced the completion of the next four in its series of nine architectural cabinets featuring the most celebrated Châteaux in Bordeaux. The collectors' items were commissioned by The Antique Wine Company from LINLEY and feature Château d'Yquem, Château Haut-Brion, Château La Mission Haut-Brion and Château Petrus. This follows the Château Margaux architectural cabinet, the first of which was bought by the château itself.

The bespoke cabinets contain 18 bottles of wine, the finest vintages produced during the 20th and 21st centuries, with the Yquem model, shown above, accompanied by a complete vertical collection of Château d'Yquem spanning 141 consecutive vintages from 1868 to the latest current release. This ultimate collection also includes several letters and memorabilia retrieved from the Château archives during the Lur Saluces era and will be sold by The Antique Wine Company during September 2010 by private negotiation and expected to realize a value of over $1 million. The other châteaux are each priced at £149,000.

As Château Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion celebrate the 75th anniversary of the acquisition of Château Haut-Brion by Clarence Dillon, one of the Château Haut-Brion cabinets is being shown for the first time during Masterpiece London, which runs from through June 29. Others yet to be released by The Antique Wine Company in the series are: Château Mouton Rothschild, Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Latour and Château Cheval Blanc.

Tags: antique wine company, chateau dyquem, chateau haut-brion, chateaux margaux, wine, wine cabinet, wine cabinets