PRESS RELEASE
DRC DOMINATES AS NEARLY HK$55 MILLION/US$7 MILLION SOLD
AT ACKER MERRALL’S SEPTEMBER HONG KONG AUCTION
DOMAINE DE LA ROMANEE CONTI SETS NINETEEN NEW WORLD RECORDS AND TOTALS OVER HALF THE OVERALL DOLLARS OF THE SALE
INTERNATIONAL WATERS RUN DEEP AS AMERICA, JAPAN AND TAIWAN EACH ACCOUNT FOR 15% OF THE AUCTION
Top Lot Photos
Three notable lots from Saturday’s Hong Kong auction at Acker Merrall:
Lot 273: six magnums of 1982 Chateau Latour in OWC
Lot 310: six magnums 1990 DRC Grands Echezeaux in banded OWC – a New World Record price
Lot 360: three magnums of 2005 Romanee Conti in OWC - a new world record price
Hong Kong, SAR – September 24th 2018 – A tidy 600 lots of the very best of the best brought over HK$55 million/US$7 million this past weekend in Hong Kong as wines from Domaine de la Romanee Conti dominated the sales floor. Asian and US collectors bought aggressively from the two featured collections on offer, both of which were almost exclusively purchased on release and kept in their original wooden cases. Domaine de la Romanee Conti played the leading role in each of these collections and on the sales floor, setting nineteen New World Records and accounting for over half the sale’s overall dollars. Great vintages of Bordeaux First Growths that were nurtured for decades in their American cellars, led by a superb collection of the great 1982 Bordeaux vintage, also excelled as demand for the best clarets remained firm. While the Hong Kong auctions tend to be dominated by the Chinese, this particular sale saw strong international demand, with American, Japanese and Taiwanese buyers accounting for approximately 15% each of the sale’s proceeds.
The auction’s Top Ten Lots were unsurprisingly an all Burgundy show given DRC’s dominance. A rare three magnum OWC of 2005 Romanee Conti snared the number one spot, selling for HK$1,289,600/US$166,400 while setting a New World Record price. Two twelve bottle parcel lots of the famous 1999 Henri Jayer Vosne Romanee Cros Parantoux were each bought for HK$1,190,400/US$153,600, and those were followed by an iconic methuselah of the 1990 DRC La Tache in a banded OWC that sold for HK$793,600/US$102,400. Two magnums of 2006 Romanee Conti, part of an impressive all magnum Romanee Conti collection, sold for HK$694,400/US$89,600. The already legendary 2015 Romanee Conti was aggressively pursued as a three bottle banded OWC went for HK$644,800/US$83,200, also a New World Record price. Achieving the same price was a twelve bottle banded OWC of the 1990 DRC La Tache, followd by a rare twelve bottle case of 1998 Georges Roumier selling for HK$595,200/US$76,800. Completing the Top Ten Lots were parcel lots of the 1990 DRC Assortment in banded OWCs that were each bought for HK$545,600/US$70,400, as was a three bottle banded OWC of the 1999 Romanee Conti, and lastly a 1999 DRC Assortment in banded OWC selling for HK$496,000/$64,000.
“This was about as high-powered as a sale that we’ve ever had, as the average lot price was about 100k HKD, north of US$12,000, and we can thank Domaine de la Romanee Conti for that! Our two featured collections were both of superb provenance and superb quality, and the OWCs of DRC were just what the market ordered,” said Acker Merrall and Condit Companies Chairman John Kapon. “Over HK$55 million/US$7 million in sales brings us to US$15 Million total in September, and lots more is coming! Our next sale will be in New York City on October 12th 2018, a ‘Friday Night Lights’ evening auction, followed by another in Hong Kong on November 3rd. Between those two sales, we will see another US$15 Million again! Buckle up!”
Acker Merrall’s next auctions will be held in NYC on October 12th 2018 and in Hong Kong on November 3rd 2018. To download the October 12th 2018 NYC auction catalog later this week, or for information about consigning your collection to Acker Merrall please visit
www.ackerwines.com.
Highlights from the September 22nd 2018 Hong Kong auction
Lot Qty Format Vintage Wine HK$ Price US$ Price
17 6 Bottles 2015 Domaine de la Vougeraie Musigny $39,680 $5,120
33 3 Magnums 1999 J.F. Mugnier Musigny $198,400 $25,600
43 6 Bottles 2002 Bouchard Pere La Romanee $69,440 $8,960
80 3 Bottles 2015 Romanee Conti $644,800 $83,200
81 3 Bottles 2015 DRC Montrachet $223,200 $28,800
88 12 Bottles 1998 G. Roumier Musigny $595,200 $76,800
92 1 Bottle 1999 G. Roumier Musigny $89,280 $11,520
93 1 Bottle 2001 G. Roumier Musigny $64,480 $8,320
137 12 Bottles 1982 Chateau Haut Brion $99,200 $12,800
139 12 Bottles 1982 Chateau l'Evangile $49,600 $6,400
147 12 Bottles 1982 Chateau La Tour Haut Brion $47,120 $6,080
151 12 Bottles 1982 Chateau Lafite Rothschild $322,400 $41,600
192 2 Bottles 1975 Chateau Petrus $49,600 $6,400
211 12 Bottles 1989 Chateau Haut Brion $198,400 $25,600
218 12 Bottles 1949 Chateau Latour $347,200 $44,800
220 12 Bottles 1959 Chateau Latour $248,000 $32,000
267 12 Bottles 2000 Chateau Haut Brion $79,360 $10,240
268 12 Bottles 1982 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion $128,960 $16,640
272 6 Bottles 1982 Chateau Lafleur $168,640 $21,760
273 6 Magnums 1982 Chateau Latour $272,800 $35,200
294 12 Bottles 1970 Chateau Petrus $297,600 $38,400
299 12 Bottles 1990 Chateau Petrus $421,600 $54,400
305 12 Bottles 1999 DRC Assortment $496,000 $64,000
306 13 Bottles 2005 DRC Assortment $471,200 $60,800
307 13 Bottles 2006 DRC Assortment $372,000 $48,000
309 12 Bottles 1990 DRC Grands Echezeaux $396,800 $51,200
310 6 Magnums 1990 DRC Grands Echezeaux $471,200 $60,800
314 12 Bottles 1990 DRC La Tache $644,800 $83,200
319 12 Bottles 1996 DRC Richebourg $297,600 $38,400
320 6 Bottles 1999 DRC Richebourg $188,480 $24,320
322 3 Bottles 1999 Romanee Conti $545,600 $70,400
323 3 Bottles 2001 Romanee Conti $396,800 $51,200
328 10 Bottles 1990 DRC Romanee St. Vivant $248,000 $32,000
331 1 Bottle 2009 DRC Montrachet $54,560 $7,040
342 6 Bottles 2002 DRC La Tache $272,800 $35,200
360 3 Magnums 2005 Romanee Conti $1,289,600 $166,400
361 2 Magnums 2006 Romanee Conti $694,400 $89,600
362 1 Magnum 2007 Romanee Conti $322,400 $41,600
365 8 Bottles 1996 DRC Romanee St. Vivant $178,560 $23,040
389 1 Magnum 2002 Romanee Conti $347,200 $44,800
391 12 Bottles 1999 H. Jayer Vosne Romanee Cros Parantoux $1,190,400 $153,600
393 1 Methuselah 1990 DRC La Tache $793,600 $102,400
409 3 Bottles 2005 Romanee Conti $496,000 $64,000
527 1ea. Magnums 2011, 2012 Harlan Estate Red $27,280 $3,520
