NEW YORK, NY.- This month, Sotheby’s presents Immortal Vintages | 200 Years of Bordeaux, a landmark single-owner sale tracing the evolution of Bordeaux across two centuries. To be offered live in New York on April 17, the meticulously curated auction comprises over 250 lots and is estimated to achieve in excess of $1 million.
This extraordinary collection represents a deeply personal pursuit of vinous excellence, assembled over decades by a passionate collector with a creative background. Approaching wine with both intellectual rigor and emotional curiosity, he sought not only to acquire the world’s greatest bottles, but to understand and experience them. His journey began in the 1980s, following a vertical tasting of Château Margaux, and evolved into a lifelong dedication to sourcing exceptional wines from auctions and private cellars. The result is a remarkably focused and cohesive collection that reflects both connoisseurship and intent.
Unlike traditional single-owner sales—often spanning many hundreds of lots—Immortal Vintages is intentionally concise, with each bottle selected with precision. The result is a “roll call” of Bordeaux’s most revered châteaux and vintages, ranging from the pre-phylloxera era of the 19th century, widely regarded as a golden age of winemaking, through to the modern classics of the late 20th century. Presented together in a single auction, the collection reveals the care, discipline, and vision behind its formation.
At the heart of the sale are two extraordinary highlights: Château Lafite Rothschild 1865 and two magnums of the renowned Glamis Castle Château Lafite Rothschild 1870. Both legendary vintages predate the devastating phylloxera epidemic that swept through Europe’s vineyards in the late 19th century and were produced from original, ungrafted vines—an authenticity many purists believe cannot be replicated in modern winemaking. For collectors seeking to experience Bordeaux as it existed before this transformative moment in viticultural history, these wines represent an irreplaceable opportunity at the highest level, embodying a lost era whose character endures only in such rare survivals.
The Lafite 1865 stands among the oldest and most famous Bordeaux vintages ever brought to auction by Sotheby’s (est. $15,000-20,000). This remarkable bottle originates from the cellar of Sir George Meyrick at the Meyrick family estate in North Wales. Its contents were first dispersed at auction in 1970, where this bottle remained undisturbed for 100 years. Noted for its exceptionally deep color and outstanding quality upon release, the 1865 was already one of the most expensive wines of its time. Among pre-phylloxera vintages, it remains one of the most revered by collectors today.
Two individual lots of Lafite 1870 magnums (est. $30,000–50,000) boast exceptional provenance, having originated from the historic cellars of Glamis Castle in Scotland—the seat of the Earls of Strathmore and Kinghorne. The estate maintained meticulous records, including a “Cellar Book 1885–1894,” which documents the purchase and laying down of 48 magnums of 1870 Lafite in 1878. When the Glamis cellar was rediscovered and brought to auction in 1971, the wines had remained undisturbed in dark, cold conditions for almost a century, contributing to their preservation. Bottles tasted from this storied cellar since the auction are widely regarded as the best preserved examples of this wine.
The collection continues through a succession of iconic vintages—1929, 1945, 1947, 1959, 1961, and 1982—featuring the First Growths alongside the greatest Châteaux. Many wines are presented in large formats, including magnums, double magnums, jeroboams, and even an imperial, formats that significantly enhance both rarity and longevity. Highlights include the monumental 1959 Lafite in Imperial (est. $30,000-50,000), 1961 Palmer in Double Magnum (est. $18,000-24,000), and 1959 Haut-Brion in Jeroboam (est. $20,000-30,000), alongside an exceptional vertical selection of Château d’Yquem dating back to the legendary 1896.
What further distinguishes this collection is its exceptional condition. Acquired primarily during the 1980s and 1990s from leading auction houses, the wines have remained in a single custom-built private cellar in the Northeast ever since. Fill levels, color, and overall integrity are remarkable for wines of this age, underscoring the collector’s rigorous attention to storage and documentation.
Beyond its individual highlights, the sale offers collectors a rare opportunity to explore Bordeaux comparatively across vintages, Châteaux, and formats. From vertical tastings of legendary producers to side-by-side examinations of the great vintages of the 20th century, the collection invites engagement, continuing the spirit in which it was originally assembled.
With fewer than ten 19th-century red Bordeaux bottles offered in New York by Sotheby’s in recent decades, Immortal Vintages represents an exceptionally rare moment in the market. It is both a celebration of Bordeaux’s enduring legacy and a testament to a collector’s lifelong pursuit of the extraordinary.
