Winemaking in Russia and abroad brings good income. For example, the average cost of a bottle of wine in Moscow in 2018 was 389 rubles, and 324 rubles in the country. But collectors possessing the most expensive wine bottles in the world, just laugh at such prices. They paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for their treasures.
We present you the top ten most expensive wines in the world according to the database of Wine-Searcher and other sources. Perhaps during the reading process you will want to drink a glass or two of grape juice. Well, it’s both more useful and cheaper than laying out hundreds of thousands of dollars (for your convenience, we converted the price to rubles at the exchange rate at the time of writing) for wine that could have lost its properties for a long time.
10. Chateau d’Yquem 1811 - $ 117,000 (7.7 million rubles)
One of the greatest wines in the history of Bordeaux was born in 1811 at the French winery Chateau d’ Iquem.
Having outlived its creators a lot, a bottle of Chateau d’Yquem was sold in 2011 for £ 75,000 (US $ 117,000) to private collector Christian Vannek. At the moment, it is the most expensive bottle of white wine in the world. And perhaps already empty.
9. Chateau Lafite 1787 - $ 156,450 (10.3 million rubles)
Publisher Malcolm Forbes in 1985 laid out nearly $ 160,000 for a bottle of red wine from the Chateau Lafite in 1787, which was believed to be from the cellar of the third US president, Thomas Jefferson. This is proved by the initials of Th.J. engraved on it. One of the founding fathers of the stronghold of democracy was a great connoisseur of strong drinks and had an impressive collection of wines, which money lovers successfully sell. Nevertheless, the authenticity of this bottle is controversial, and experts were divided on this issue.
The great story of the Chateau Lafite 1787 did not end after the sale. Forbes exhibited his valuable acquisition in a collection dedicated to Thomas Jefferson; however, the cork of the bottle, unable to withstand the light of the lamp, dried out and fell inward. Upset Forbes immediately called wine expert Michael Broadbent, who at that time was in charge of the wine department at Christie’s auction house. Broadbent's advice was simple and ingenious - just insert a new cork. All these events only added fuel to the debate about whether this wine can be considered genuine, or whether engraving on it is a skillful fake.
8. Penfolds Limited Edition Ampoule - $ 168,000 (11.1 million rubles)
It is the most expensive wine sold directly from the winery. And those who cannot afford it can buy a glass for only $ 850.
Unlike other participants in the wine rating, this wine in a very original packaging is exclusively a commercial product from the most famous winery in South Australia.
Wine tasting is a very exciting process in itself; and to make it truly unforgettable, each “ampoule” containing a precious liquid is supplied with a glass tip, which should be broken off in the right way. The buyer is assisted by specially trained staff at the winery.
7. Chateau Margaux 1787 - $ 225,000 (14.9 million rubles)
The history of one of the most expensive wines in the world had a tragic ending. This bottle of Chateau Margot was once owned by Thomas Jefferson and the insurance company valued it at $ 225,000.
Its last owner, William Solokin, a wine merchant, brought his alcoholic jewel for a dinner party at the Four Season Hotel. And there the careless waiter broke it! According to another version, Solokin himself accidentally broke the bottle when his bag with a Chateau Margaux 1787 inside knocked on a serving table.
Whatever the reality, the insurance company paid Solokin a quarter of a million dollars for a drink that he would never try again.
6. Chateau Lafite 1869 - $ 230,000 (15.2 million rubles)
Chateau Lafite is a winery in France that has been owned by members of the Rothschild family since the 19th century. And just as the Rothschilds are considered one of the richest people in the world, Chateau Lafite wine is considered one of the most expensive alcoholic drinks available only to the golden billion.
In 2010, three bottles of Chateau Lafite with divine nectar from the 1869 crop were sold at Sotheby’s auction. For each of them they asked for 230 thousand dollars. All three lots were purchased by one buyer, and how much he paid for them - you can easily calculate it yourself. Now the new owner can enjoy an expensive drink, emptying the first two bottles, and leaving the third to the envy of everyone.
5. Shipwrecked 1907 Heidsieck - $ 275,000 (18.2 million rubles)
The party of this noble drink of the harvest of 1907 was intended as a gift to the last Russian Tsar Nicholas II. However, it did not reach its destination, since the ship that was carrying champagne for the Russian Imperial Court was sunk by a German submarine during the First World War. And only in 1998, divers found a sunken valuable cargo off the coast of Finland. Alas, it was not included in the list of the best champagne according to Roskachestvo, since it is not designed for the mass consumer.
Now unknown lucky ones inhale this wonderful aroma of history.
4. Cheval-Blanc 1947 - $ 304,375 (20.2 million rubles)
The spring-fall of 1947 was exceptionally hot from early April to October. Harvesting in the winery Chateau Cheval Blanc began on September 15, when the air temperature was even higher than 35 degrees, and was completed quite quickly. These hot conditions meant that 1947 Bordeaux wines had reached atypically high levels of natural sugar.
In 2010, one of the best creations of viticulture art - the Cheval Blanc harvest of 1947 - passed into the hands of a private collector, who laid out for him over 300 thousand dollars at Christies auction.
3. Chateau Mouton Rothschild Jeroboam 1945 - $ 310,700 (20.6 million rubles)
On the label of this wine flaunts a golden “V” sign, indicating the victory of the USSR and allies in World War II. But not only the sign determined such a high price for the bottle. It's all about its large size. If this were a standard capacity of 750 ml, it would be sold for only 51,783 dollars.
2. Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 - $ 500,000 (33.1 million rubles)
One of the most expensive wines ever sold. And if other elite alcohol only became more expensive as it grew older, then the 1992 Screaming Eagle, at the time of sale, had not yet celebrated its decade.
A bottle of “Screaming Eagle” king size (as much as six liters) was sold for a whopping half a million dollars in 2000 at a charity auction in the famous vineyard zone - Napa Valley. She could afford it to Chase Bailey, the former head of Cisco Systems.
1. Romanee-Conti Grand Cru - $ 551,314 (36.6 million rubles)
Some people spend more than half a million dollars on the most expensive wine called Romanee-Conti, a 1945 crop. The initial valuation of the 73-year-old French Burgundy bottle put up for auction at Sotheby’s in 2018 was $ 32,000. And the final price for a bottle of the most expensive wine exceeded the initial one by more than 17 times.
Romanee-Conti is the “king of collection wines,” and 1945 is his most expensive vintage. Only 600 bottles were produced at that time, and it was the last year in which older, preferred vines were used.
According to Sotheby’s, the best 1945 Romanee-Conti bottles are "so concentrated and exotic that they seem to have eternal power - this is a wine in peace with itself." We can only hope that the person who considered it appropriate to spend so much on a bottle of alcohol is also at peace with himself.
