2 bottles per lot
Details
PROPERTY OF A FINE NEW YORK GENTLEMAN
When this New York gentleman began collecting wine in recent years, he faced a quandary: Where to begin? He flirted with Champagne and with prominent Chateaux of the Medoc, before finding true love with a few estates nestled on the right side of the Gironde estuary. Petrus, Ausone, Cheval, Le Pin: the names are familiar beyond the world of wine. While their reputations (and expense!) loom large, their mystique continues to grow, due to the undeniable fact the hype of the label is exceeded by the power and quality of the juice in the bottle.
Over the course of three sales, I have come to know this consigner well and to respect his attenuated sense of the market. He demonstrates fastidiousness and passion in his new hobby, and only ever buys wine if it is absolutely perfect from the most secure sources.
All lots have been purchases as futures from well-regarded retailers and have been removed from professional storage facilities for this sale.
Amanda Crawford
PÉTRUS
PÉTRUS, the letters loom on the horizon over quiet Pomerol as one approaches in much the same way the label's St. Peter's stoic stare strikes awe in the hearts of wine faithful everywhere. Though there was a small but loyal low country following before the war, it's hard to imagine this vaunted chateau was a sleepy almost obscure farmhouse until Harry Waugh started importing it beginning with the 1949 vintage. Pétrus was shortly thereafter popularized and marketed by Ronald Avery of Avery's in Bristol. Jean-Pierre Moueix, who had been the chateau's sole agent since 1947, inherited a third of the estate in 1961, purchased a majority share a few years later, finally achieving sole ownership in 2002. He and has family have been instrumental in the caretaker perfection lavished over the estate over the last half century in taking its natural glory to new heights. Only slightly more than two thousand cases are produced from exclusively merlot vines in their thirties, on a bastion of blue clay ideally situated in the middle of Pomerol's plateau. The wines are aged 18-20 months in new oak asks and now bottled without filtration, a practice which weakened some of the mid 1980s vintages. The unique beauty of Pétrus is its incredible concentration from low yields married with deft elegance of indescribable breed that is elusive on the right bank. The ripe rich fruit is balanced by stern tannins and framed by lovely oak.
Château Pétrus--Vintage 1998
Pomerol, cru exceptionnel
Lot 396 in original wooden case
"The 1998 Pétrus is unquestionably a fabulous effort boasting a dense plum/purple color as well as an extraordinary nose of black fruits intermixed with caramel, mocha, and vanilla. Exceptionally pure, super-concentrated, and extremely full-bodied, with admirable underlying acidity as well as sweet tannin, it reveals a superb mid-palate in addition to the luxurious richness for which this great property is known. The finish lasts for 40-45 seconds... Anticipated maturity: 2008-2040." Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #134 (Apr 2001)
2 bottles per lot
When this New York gentleman began collecting wine in recent years, he faced a quandary: Where to begin? He flirted with Champagne and with prominent Chateaux of the Medoc, before finding true love with a few estates nestled on the right side of the Gironde estuary. Petrus, Ausone, Cheval, Le Pin: the names are familiar beyond the world of wine. While their reputations (and expense!) loom large, their mystique continues to grow, due to the undeniable fact the hype of the label is exceeded by the power and quality of the juice in the bottle.
Over the course of three sales, I have come to know this consigner well and to respect his attenuated sense of the market. He demonstrates fastidiousness and passion in his new hobby, and only ever buys wine if it is absolutely perfect from the most secure sources.
All lots have been purchases as futures from well-regarded retailers and have been removed from professional storage facilities for this sale.
Amanda Crawford
PÉTRUS
PÉTRUS, the letters loom on the horizon over quiet Pomerol as one approaches in much the same way the label's St. Peter's stoic stare strikes awe in the hearts of wine faithful everywhere. Though there was a small but loyal low country following before the war, it's hard to imagine this vaunted chateau was a sleepy almost obscure farmhouse until Harry Waugh started importing it beginning with the 1949 vintage. Pétrus was shortly thereafter popularized and marketed by Ronald Avery of Avery's in Bristol. Jean-Pierre Moueix, who had been the chateau's sole agent since 1947, inherited a third of the estate in 1961, purchased a majority share a few years later, finally achieving sole ownership in 2002. He and has family have been instrumental in the caretaker perfection lavished over the estate over the last half century in taking its natural glory to new heights. Only slightly more than two thousand cases are produced from exclusively merlot vines in their thirties, on a bastion of blue clay ideally situated in the middle of Pomerol's plateau. The wines are aged 18-20 months in new oak asks and now bottled without filtration, a practice which weakened some of the mid 1980s vintages. The unique beauty of Pétrus is its incredible concentration from low yields married with deft elegance of indescribable breed that is elusive on the right bank. The ripe rich fruit is balanced by stern tannins and framed by lovely oak.
Château Pétrus--Vintage 1998
Pomerol, cru exceptionnel
Lot 396 in original wooden case
"The 1998 Pétrus is unquestionably a fabulous effort boasting a dense plum/purple color as well as an extraordinary nose of black fruits intermixed with caramel, mocha, and vanilla. Exceptionally pure, super-concentrated, and extremely full-bodied, with admirable underlying acidity as well as sweet tannin, it reveals a superb mid-palate in addition to the luxurious richness for which this great property is known. The finish lasts for 40-45 seconds... Anticipated maturity: 2008-2040." Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #134 (Apr 2001)
2 bottles per lot