Collector’s Cellar: The Treasures of Château Haut-Brion
A direct-from-the-cellar sale presents collectors with a rare opportunity to acquire some of the finest first-growth Bordeaux—and experience the château in all its glory.
O f all the five fabled first-growth Bordeaux, only one was ever name-checked by a famous 17th-century London diarist. The great Samuel Pepys was so impressed by “a sort of French wine called Ho Bryan” that he noted its consumption with an exact date, April 10, 1663, and offered these words of praise: it “hath a good and most particular taste.”
When Pepys wrote his note, Château Haut-Brion was already famous, and it has continued to garner further acclaim over the past 300-plus years, recognized not only as one of the best wines in Bordeaux but among the greatest wines in the world.
In a tribute to its illustrious history and the 90th anniversary of American financier Clarence Dillon’s purchase of Château Haut-Brion, Sotheby’s will hold a historic auction in Paris on October 1. The sale, “Château Haut-Brion, Domaine Clarence Dillon: Celebrating Our 10th Decade of Family Stewardship,” features not only a collection of remarkable wines from top vintages sourced directly from the château cellars but also extraordinary access to the château itself, with special “wine experience” lots.
These lots were created by Sotheby’s in conjunction with Prince Robert of Luxembourg, Chairman and CEO of Domaine Clarence Dillon and the great-grandson of Clarence Dillon. Prince Robert, at the helm since 2008, has long sought innovative ways to bring wine lovers closer to the company’s multiple châteaux. “We’ve always been ahead of the game historically,” he says, “we’ve always tried to do things a little differently.”
Frédéric Guyot du Repaire, Head of Wine, Europe, for Sotheby’s and a Sotheby’s Senior Specialist, acknowledges Prince Robert’s forward-thinking approach. “The sale not only celebrates the 10th decade of the Dillon family ownership, but it is looking at the future as well,” he says, adding that the sale was the first to “focus fully on Haut-Brion.”
The Dillon family has been at the vanguard of positive change in Bordeaux ever since Clarence Dillon, an American financier and impassioned Francophile, purchased Château Haut-Brion in 1935. Although the château was long-established when Dillon made his purchase, it was struggling financially. Under the stewardship of the Dillon family—with guidance from legendary winemaker Jean-Bernard Delmas and his son and successor Jean-Philippe Delmas (whom famed wine critic Robert M. Parker Jr. once dubbed “wine deities”)—the château has evolved into one of the most modern and progressive in all Bordeaux.
Prince Robert has overseen much of the contemporary revitalization of the historic estate and cellars, including an extensive renovation of the château, a new visitor center and, most recently, a new and expansive library set to open in 2027. At a moment when vineyards across Europe are confronting increasingly unpredictable environmental challenges—such as the wildfires that were happening at press time—the structure’s carbon-neutral design, by New York-based Selldorf Architects, feels especially pointed. It will house an extraordinary collection of wine and gastronomy books curated by Prince Robert himself.
“We’ve always been ahead of the game historically. We’ve always tried to do things a little differently.”
Prince Robert of Luxembourg
Prince Robert and Sotheby’s have enjoyed a long relationship—for his part, Prince Robert sees wine auctions as a way of “connecting with consumers” while bringing “perfectly sourced wines to market.” The wines offered in the October 1 sale are certainly of impeccable provenance: sourced directly from the cellars of the Domaine Clarence Dillon châteaux. The selection is unprecedented and includes not only the wines of Château Haut-Brion but also those of Le Bahans Haut-Brion, Le Clarence de Haut-Brion, Les Plantiers du Haut-Brion and La Clarté de Haut-Brion.
Perfectly curated bottles are also highlighted in the “wine experiences” auction lots designed to offer wine lovers a better understanding of the Dillon family’s nine decades of work. There are six experiences included in the sale. For example, “The Soul of Château Haut-Brion,” with a €40,000 to €80,000 estimated sale price, features a visit to Château Haut-Brion, lunch in a private dining room prepared by a guest chef and six 100-point Château Haut-Brion wines.
Other experiences include an intimate family lunch at Château Haut-Brion accompanied by a tasting of Domaine Clarence Dillon wines, a vineyard walk, a private view of the château and a vertical tasting of Château Haut-Brion conducted by the cellar master. There is an “Intimate Visit to Château La Mission Haut-Brion” and a “Collector’s Wine and Art Journey,” featuring eight historic vintages of Château Haut-Brion, alongside a limited-edition console designed by Prince Robert of Luxembourg in collaboration with English furniture maker David Linley (estimated between €130,000-€260,000).
Perhaps one of the most remarkable lots is a barrel of the yet-to-be-bottled 2025 Château Haut-Brion rouge, the first-ever such offering by a first-growth château. (It’s estimated to go for somewhere between €100,000 and €200,000.) The 2025 Château Haut-Brion rouge has collected multiple 100-point scores and been heralded by critics as a near-perfect wine, one of the greatest wines of an outstanding vintage.
Longtime Sotheby’s clients and collectors such as Harry Ansell in London are eagerly awaiting the opportunity to bid on such lots. Ansell will be bidding remotely with a group of like-minded friends, he says, “hopefully at a Sotheby’s lunch in London.”
Ansell is particularly keen on securing more bottles of the legendary 1989 and 1990 vintages of Château Haut-Brion, which he has been fortunate enough to drink many times. Both vintages are featured in the auction, including a 12-bottle case of the 1989 (estimated at €20,000 to €26,000) and a magnum of the 1990 (€700 to €2,400). Although he maintains a deep Bordeaux cellar, he says it’s Haut-Brion that has his heart: “It’s the wine that gives me the most pleasure, without a shadow of a doubt.”
Ansell acknowledges that auction prices are likely to be high and the competition to be keen, or as he puts it: “Every man and his dog will be bidding.” Auction winners—canine and otherwise—can count themselves quite fortunate indeed.
