Two bottles of 1945 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti have broken world records to become the most expensive wines ever sold at auction. They went on sale at a Sotheby’s auction in New York last week, with one fetching £424,000 and the other £377,000.
The wines were being offered as part of the collection from the cellar of Robert Drouhin. The consignment of old and rare DRC was 100% sold and realised US$7.3 million in total – five times its pre-sale high estimate.
Jamie Ritchie, worldwide head of Sotheby’s Wine, commented: “Today marks an extraordinary moment not only in the history of Sotheby’s, but also in the auction market for wine and spirits worldwide. The new world record established in today’s sale is further proof that the demand for wine and spirits of exceptional quality is at an all-time high, and that global collectors are willing to go the extra mile to acquire the rarest bottles of any kind.
“The world auction record for a single bottle of wine of any size, established by Sotheby’s New York in 2007, has stood for more than 10 years, and it was a privilege to top our previous success twice in one sale.”
