We recently reported on the blog that Lafite's performance at Christie's Finest and Rarest Wines auction in Hong Kong was relatively underwhelming. Burgundy's most eminent producer, however, has created quite a stir this month.
Over the past few weeks, DRC has been a major feature of several auctions around the world, including Hong Kong, London and New York. But although top lots of Tache and Romanee Conti set new records for the estate in London and New York, the results achieved in Hong Kong are equally, if not more, significant. This can be seen from the table below, which compares the winning bids from the Sotheby's auction in New York on the 10th with those from the Christie's sale in Hong Kong on the 4th. Auction prices include buyer's premium and are shown alongside current merchant list prices.
All prices are for 12x75cl cases and have been converted to GBP.
The above comparison reveals that buyers in Hong Kong were willing to pay an average of 48 per cent more than their New York counterparts for the same vintages of DRC. This seems to confirm that Asian interest has indeed expanded beyond Bordeaux – and it is the top names from Burgundy that are first in line to benefit.
