L10705 | 19 May, 2010 | GRAND TOTAL: £623,323 ($894,158)¹ | SOLD BY LOT: 95.3% LOTS OFFERED: 431 | SOLD BY £: 98.8% | LOTS SOLD/UNSOLD: 411/20

Sotheby’s sale of Fine and Rare Wines & Vintage Port in London yesterday made a total of £623,323 ($894,158), over a pre-sale estimate of £443,170-551,010, and was 99% sold by value and 95% sold by lot.

Discussing the sale, Stephen Mould, Senior Director, Sotheby’s Wine Department, said: Yesterday saw another successful Sotheby’s auction with Bordeaux still leading the way with many prices exceeding their estimates in anticipation of the opening prices for the 2009 vintage. Lafite was a prime example with the 2000 vintage making our highest price ever at £18,400 – up from £16,100 in last month’s sale. The 2003 Lafite also hit the heights at £10,350 – up from £8,625 in April’s auction. Elsewhere in the sale the Italian section – including the Super Tuscans and Gaja – and a section of more affordable Burgundy demonstrated that it’s not just Bordeaux that’s in demand. Private buyers had a strong presence in the sale, as did online bidders who competed heavily with bidders in the room and on the phones throughout the morning. We are now looking forward to our superb sale on 21 and 22 May in Hong Kong with treasures shipped direct from the cellars of Châteaux Cheval Blanc and Yquem together with a super-lot of Dom Pérignon Oenothèque Rosé, which is being released onto the market for the first time.

LOT | PRICE | ESTIMATES | BUYER
5 | £18,400/($26,395) | £13,000-17,000² | European Private | Château Lafite 2000 (12 bts)
9 | £18,400/($26,395) | £12,000-15,000 | European Private | Château Pétrus 2000 (6 bts)
64 | £18,400/($26,395) | £12,000-15,000 | Asian Private | Château Latour 1982 (12 bts)
94 | £16,100/($23,095) | £11,000-14,000 | Asian Private | Château Latour 1982 (12 bts)
91 | £13,225/($18,971) | £7,500-9,000 | Asian Private | Le Pin 1985 (12 bts)
92 | £13,225/($18,971) | £7,500-9,000 | Asian Private | Le Pin 1985 (6 mags)
57 | £12,650/($18,146) | £10,000-13,000 | European Private | Château Pétrus 2005 (6 bts)
65 | £12,075/($17,322) | £8,000-9,000 | Asian Private | Château Mouton Rothschild 1982 (12 bts)
258 | £11,270/($16,167) | £7,500-8,500 | Asian Private | Château Lafite 1996 (12 bts)
49 | £10,580 ($15,177) | £7,000-8,000 | European Private | Château Lafite 2005 (12 bts)

1. exchange rate: 1.43 [↩]
2. Estimates do not include buyer’s premium [↩]