Tomorrow, wine-lovers able to reach New York will be in for a rare treat. Christie's will be holding a wine auction, and of the 596 lots there are two identical offerings which stand neck and shoulders above the reach of the sale.
These are two sets of six bottles of Romanée-Conti 1990. A vintage regarded as in a different class to most of even the finest wines.
Critic Allen Meadows's influential Burghound website in reviewing the wine refers to "...a breathtaking panoply of Asian spices, exotic fruit aromas and a touch of earth followed by rich, lush, almost opulent flavors that melt in the mouth and coat the palate with a layer of velvet on the fantastically long finish."
The review goes on to predict that the wine will maintain at least this standard of quality for several decades.
The original quality of the wine is beyond question. But what about its provenance? That too is beyond rebuke, as the two lots were bought from the vineyard, and then sold as one at Christie's in 1999 and now return having been kept in immaculate conditions.
The 53 degree Fahrenheit, 75 relative humidity cellar which has been home to the bottles for a decade is expertly maintained, includes a back-up generator in case of power outages and holds one of the finest collections in the world.
Each of the two valuable lots is expected to sell for sell for $90,000-120,000 - a strong investment asset for anyone able to credibly maintain their condition.
The sale also features a two bottle lot of the vintage, with a guide price of $30,000-50,000 and a 12 bottle lot of Château Petrus, also from 1990, for $28,000-35,000. Lafite-Rothschild 1982 and magnums of Screaming Eagle 2004 are other highlights in Friday's sale.
We will bring you the results here.
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