Three magnums of 1969 Romanee Conti Grand Cru provided the top lot of Christie's Dr Ku's Apothecary Collection wine sale in Hong Kong.

The lot sold for $55,297, comfortably within estimate at the August 31 auction.

Dr Gordon Ku is an experienced wine collector and physician, who has been amassing the world's finest wines for more than 40 years.

Buyers from 14 countries fought over the collection

There was an estimate-beating performance from 10 bottles of the 2001 Henri Jayer Cros Parantoux, an outstanding red Burgundy, which sold for $55,297 against a $49,000 high valuation.

Twelve bottles of 1989 Petrus also beat its estimate, selling for $41,077.

The auction achieved $3.9m in all - a result that cheered Simon Tam, the head of wine at Christie's China.

"We are pleased with the results of wines from Bordeaux and Petrus," he said.

"Over 94% of the wine from Petrus, in particular, were sold above its estimate range.

"White wines and champagnes were also warmly welcomed with over 94% of those sold above its estimate range. This indicates the diversity of tastes, and the depth and width of the wine market."

Buyers from 14 countries participated in the auction, indicating the international flavour of the wine market. However, all the leading lots went to Asian buyers.

The Wine Spectator Auction Index grew in value by of 0.42% in the second quarter of 2013, a much-needed sign of improvement after the sector witnessed a 22.5% fall between December 2010 and December 2012.

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