This week we read about Lafite, a brand I knew by name, and knew was one of the nicest, priciest bottles you can buy. This got me thinking, what is the most expensive bottle of wine ever sold? It turns out the highest price paid for a trio of bottles (I know, the 3 bottle thing is kind of a cop out) was $690,000, or $230,000 each. A collector bought the three bottles of wine, an 1869 Chateau Lafite, at an auction in Hong Kong in 2010. Originally, the bottles were expected to go for less than $10,000 each, so the result was quite surprising. What would prompt a collector to buy such an expensive bottle? What would the investor do with the bottles? Perhaps its a display of wealth and power? Or maybe the investor planned to drink 2 and save the 3rd? Did s/he really think the bottles would drink well (I can't imagine)? Whatever the motivation, it is an absurd amount of money to spend on a bottle of wine-turned-vinegar. I like wine, but not enough to spend hundred of thousands of dollars on a single bottle!
The 5 most expensive bottles sold at auction are:
5. Chateau Margaux 1787 - $225,000
4. Chateau Lafite 1869 - $230,000 (per bottle)
3. Shipwrecked 1907 Heidseck - $275,000
2. 1947 Cheval-Blanc - $304,375
1. Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 - $500,000
The 5 most expensive bottles sold at auction are:
5. Chateau Margaux 1787 - $225,000
4. Chateau Lafite 1869 - $230,000 (per bottle)
3. Shipwrecked 1907 Heidseck - $275,000
2. 1947 Cheval-Blanc - $304,375
1. Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 - $500,000
This is crazy! And it definitely feels like just another excuse to show off one's money. I wonder what the comparisons could be with the art world, or watches or even vintage cars. Luxury investment industry has boomed as rates have gone to zero but is now showing signs of slowdown (at least certainly for cars). Yet when it comes to wine, it does still feel quite different. As you say, surely the 1869 wine can't be a good drink. So my question then becomes, at what point does a bottle of wine become simply another piece of art that you keep in your house and never "use"?
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