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Wine Collection Sold for £3.5 million
A wine collection owned by world-famous composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has sold for $5.6 million (£3.5 million) at auction in Hong Kong.
The Sotherby’s sale exceeded all expectations, with all 746 lots (8,837 bottles) finding a new home, mostly for prices that shattered original estimates.
The much-anticipated auction took place at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel with bidders vying for the coveted lots for 6 hours. Included were bottles of white Burgundies regarded by experts as the finest ever sold in the region.
The most expensive lot in the sale was a case of Chateau Petrus 1982 (12 bottles) which sold for £48,500. The Petrus, which hails from Bordeaux, is regularly among the world’s most expensive wines.
Lord Lloyd Webber said: “I hope the new owners enjoy my wines as much as I have and look forward to reacquainting myself with them in restaurants all over China when Cats starts its national tour in Mandarin.”
The creator of legendary musicals including Cats and Phantom of the Opera already holds the world record for a wine sale. In May 2007 Sotheby’s held a two-day auction in London of 18,000 bottles fetching £3.7 million.
At a Hong Kong auction last year, a 1869 bottle of Chateau Latife was sold for £151,250 – making it the most expensive standard-sized bottle ever sold.
"Included were bottles of white Burgundies regarded by experts as the finest ever sold in the region."