A 300-bottle collection of Chateau Lafite Rothschild has sold for almost $540,000 in Hong Kong, setting a world record price for a single wine lot auctioned this year, organisers said.
The collection spanning 1981 to 2005 was knocked down for HK$4.2 million ($539,250) at Christie’s two-day Autumn wine sale, which is expected to rake in over $5 million in sales, the auction giant said late Saturday.
The record price, below a HK$4.5 million pre-sale estimate, was “the highest value lot achieved at any wine auction worldwide this year,” Christie’s said.
Prices for Chateau Lafite Rothschild have reportedly soared as much as twelve-fold over the past decade as the prestigious brand — and other labels from Bordeaux — lure in wealthy Chinese buyers.
The sale, which wraps up Sunday, comes after auctioneer Acker Merrall & Condit said its May sale grabbed multiple world records, including a price of almost $107,000 each for two cases of 1988 DRC Romanee-Conti.