O n Wednesday, July 22, at 10:00 AM EST, Sotheby’s Wine NY is delighted to continue its summer auction series with A Legacy Cellar From a Longtime Connoisseur + More. Leading the sale is A Legacy Cellar, assembled over many years by an avid collector and oenophile. This collection dazzles with its display of impeccably sourced and cellared French wine royalty, with a particular focus on the grands crus of Leroy. Additional consignments chart the high points of the Old and New World, including selections from An Important New England Cellar, Part II, as well as treasures from Marius Gentaz and Champagne Salon, alongside large-format Masseto, Krug, and top-flight Bordeaux.
Please note that this sale will offer Advance, Telephone and Online bidding only. In-person Room bidding will not be available for this sale. Registrations for bidding may be submitted via the website, app or by contacting bids.newyork@sothebys.com.
VIEW EXCEL LOT LISTING
Lots 1 - 137 A LEGACY CELLAR FROM A LIFELONG CONNOISSEUR
Lots 138 - 220 AN IMPORTANT NEW ENGLAND CELLAR, PART II
Lot 221 1961 HAUT BRION IN MAGNUM, PROPERTY OF SUSAN S. DILLON
Lots 222 - 223 THE LEGEND OF MARIUS GENTAZ, 1985 - 1991
Lots 224 - 280 TOP-FLIGHT BORDEAUX IN OWC
Lots 281 - 296 LA MISSION HAUT-BRION AND TWO DECADES OF SAUTERNES
Lots 297 - 308 D'YQUEM FROM THE '70S & '80S, 1982 RED BORDEAUX
Lots 309 - 333 LARGE FORMAT MASSETO, KRUG, AND TOP BORDEAUX
Lots 334 - 401 AGED BORDEAUX AND NAPA VALLEY STARS
Lots 402 - 411 MATURE LATOUR, LAFITE, SASSICAIA, AND VINTAGE PORT
Lots 412 - 446 FOUR DECADES OF FIRST GROWTHS, MATURE SALON AND TAITTINGER
Lots 447 - 475 PROPERLY STORED WINES FROM VARIOUS CELLARS
S otheby’s is honored to offer this exceptional wine collection, assembled over many years by an avid collector and oenophile. A chemical engineer by training, the consignor believed passionately in exploration and education. He felt strongly that wine was meant to be enjoyed and discussed and shared many bottles with novices and experts alike, often opening majestic large formats for milestone events such as weddings, anniversaries and birthdays. Along with his wife, the collector would travel Europe, meeting winemakers, spending time in vineyards and cellars, learning about terroir and treasuring the chase for the rare gems off the beaten path.
The collection dazzles with its display of French wine royalty and features the flagship wines from the most celebrated producers in a range of formats. One finds an astonishing selection of Domaine Leroy, including 60 bottles from Lalou Bize-Leroy’s Grand Cru holdings, a methuselah of 1993 DRC Richebourg and a spectacular selection of Dujac, Rousseau and Ponsot. Bordeaux standouts include 1989 Haut Brion and La Mission Haut Brion, 1990 Latour and 1982 Mouton Rothschild. Rhône’s legends are also well represented with Chave, Jaboulet, Guigal and Rayas. Finally, not to be overlooked, there is perfectly aged vintage Champagne from Dom Perignon, Krug, Pol Roger and Taittinger.
This cellar was built with passion and as a labor of love. It will now be enjoyed by wine lovers around the globe, as it was always meant to be and will be remembered as a true legacy collection.
The wines in this cellar were purchased from very reputable retail and auction sources and recently removed from both purpose-built private and professional storage for this auction.
L
alou Bize-Leroy is a force to be reckoned with in Burgundy. Brought up in wine, she developed firm principles and equally firm convictions. For her, reducing yields is a religion and biodynamic viticultural methods the route to quality and longevity. No destemming and long vattings add to the almost essence-like intensity of the wines. Their deep, emphatic style is a reflection of the commitment and personality of Lalou Bize-Leroy. These wines hardly seem to age - they stay suspended in time.
– SERENA SUTCLIFFE, MW
T hese exceptional magnums were the property of the late Susan S. Dillon, who received the wine from her husband, the Honorable C. Douglas Dillon, whose father, Clarence Dillon, purchased Château Haut-Brion in 1935. This case has been professionally stored at Western Carriers since the 1990s until it was transferred to Sotheby’s storage area and inspected by Sotheby’s specialists for this sale.
A mong devotees of classic winemaking, particularly in the Northern Rhône, there is no name more hallowed than that of Marius Gentaz. And, like the bygone domaines of Henri Jayer and Jacky Truchot in Burgundy, and Noël Verset in Cornas, his towering legacy continues to grow, while the supply of precious bottles of Gentaz- Dervieux continues to diminish. Gentaz, who retired after the 1993 vintage, considered among his top vintages the 1985, included here, alongside the classically styled 1991.
The bottles on offer here were acquired from Sotheby’s sale of The Pristine Cellar of Dr. Daniel Salzman (May 2019), since which time they have been professionally stored in ideal conditions at the Sotheby’s Wine East Coast warehouse.
S otheby’s is delighted to present Part II of a small selection from a much larger cellar, which includes a roll call of some of the best wine producers around the world. It includes those with longtime legendary reputations such as DRC, Leroy, de Vogüé, Ramonet, Mouton Rothschild, and Biondi-Santi, alongside those whose wineries were created more recently, such as Dujac, Harlan, and Screaming Eagle.
The wines have been sourced with enormous care and stored under ideal temperature-controlled conditions in a private cellar.
– JAMIE RITCHIE, WORLDWIDE HEAD, SOTHEBY’S WINE
