NEW YORK.- The Christie’s Wine & Spirits Department online sale Fine & Rare Wines and Spirits Including Historic Madeira Direct from the Island (10-24 November) totaled $1,859,188 with 97% sold by lot, 100% sold by value, and 128% hammer above low estimate. There was global participation with registered bidders from 19 countries and 27% first-time buyers. Throughout the sale there were 46 world auction records with 37 of those records set for Madeira.

Leading the online auction was a superb selection of over 130 lots of rare Madeira (lots 412-548), the largest offering of its kind ever to be sold in an online auction. Of the 136 lots offered, 100% were sold, and 37 achieved world auction records. The top lot of Madeira was the HM Borges, Pather Terrantez 1720 that sold for $20,000. Additionally, bottles recently found in the old cellar of Henriques & Henriques and rare bottlings from the old Teixeira family stock all performed well with exceptional results. This represented the largest offering of Madeira ever sold at auction exceeding $500,000.

In addition to the treasure trove of Madeira, the sale offered fantastic Pre-Prohibition bottles, including the top lot of the sale, an incredibly rare case of 1903 Mount Vernon Rye that sold for $25,000. The sale was rounded out by an ample offering of Bordeaux led by large format bottles of must-have vintages, such as a double magnum of Petrus 1990 that sold for $21,250; an imperial of Château Lafite-Rothschild 1986 that sold for $9,375; and three Jeroboams of Bollinger, R.D. 1965 that achieved $8,750.

Chris Munro, Head of Department, Americas Fine Wine & Spirits, comments, “With Madeira dating back to 1720, this auction represented a rare chance to acquire historic bottles never before seen for sale, and our clients responded with enthusiasm. With perfect provenance direct from some of the Island’s most notable families – it was truly a unique offering of some of the greatest wines Madeira has to offer. We are delighted with the exceptionally strong results including a significant number of world record prices. This sale demonstrates the continued success of Christie’s Online platform and its ability to reach the broadest possible global audience.”