DALLAS, TX.- Twelve bottles of 1989 Chateau Haut Brion that sold for $29,520, plus a single bottle of 1988 Jayer Cros Parantoux that realized $24,600, helped lead Heritage Auctions’ Dec. 10 Wine Signature® event past $2.2 million.

Both lots exceeded their high estimates — the Jayer by more than double. In fact, the Jayer sold for more than double the existing highest price ever achieved in the United States or Asia.

The rare bottle of 1988 Jayer Cros Parantoux, which was signed by Henri Jayer himself, shattered its pre-auction estimate of $8,500-$12,000. Jayer, who died in 2006, was a heralded French vintner who began producing wines in the 1950s. His wines quickly earned a strong reputation and remain among the most sought after at auction.

“This was a tremendously important result, really highlighting the fact that the right wines with the right provenance are irreplaceable, and carry value commensurate with that incredible rarity,” said Frank Martell, Senior Director of Fine & Rare Wine for Heritage Auctions. “There just aren’t many wines that are made in such small volume and quality.”

But that bottle wasn’t the only Henri Jayer wine to make a splash at the event. Four bottles of 1984 Meo Camuzet Cros Parantoux, a vintage that has never been sold before, realized $6,765. The bottles, which have belonged to the same collector since the late 1980s, represent one of the first times the wine was ever made, and they are the oldest to ever come to auction.

“For these bottles to have survived this long is nothing short of remarkable,” Martell said, “and a few savvy collectors saw that opportunity in history and made the most of it.”

Several other individual bottles finished strong in the event, including a magnum of 2009 Rouseau Chambertin that sold for $11,992.50, a bottle of the legendary Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1945 Pauillac that realized $11,685 and a 1988 Roumier Bonnes Mares Vieilles Vignes that sold for $11,070.

The Friday-night sale in Beverly Hills drew nearly 500 bidders, boasted spectacular sell-through rates of 99.9% by value and lots sold, and featured multiple lots that exceeded their pre-auction estimates.

“I generally tell people not to expect a high estimate result,” Martell said. “So we were more than thrilled to see these prices simply crush expectations.”

Other lots that exceeded their pre-auction estimates included but were not limited to:

Chateau La Mission Haut Brion 1982 (12): $16,605

Chateau Petrus 1990 (3): $14,760

Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1986 (12): $14,452.50

Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (3): $14,145

Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 (3): $13,530

Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1986 (12): $12,915

Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1998 (3): $12,915

Chateau Petrus 2008 (4): $12,300