Unbelievable €800 ($900) for an empty DRC RC 2004 no. 00478, and the empty 1998 Richebourg (same seller) no. 00050, with the cork, is at €181, both soon to end at eBay.
http://www.ebay.de/itm/2004-Romanee-Conti-DRC-Burgundy-/121989006914?hash=item1c671c8642:g:kvAAAOSwf05XOlF8
Maybe some bidders thinks it is the full bottle…
Beware for these serial numbers, the bottles will soon be full again.
Please post other empties, DRC or other, that are sold
Regards, Soren.
Have many Pictures from DRC empties and also DRC Labels(without bottle) but i think is too expansive…
this empties was on ebay
Thanks Roman, for nice pics. When was these sold ?
Update on empty Richebourg 1998 w. cork ; ended €200+.
Romanee Conti 2004 empty, new bidders ; now €822 and rising.
Empty DRC OWCs are always available on eBay, at $50 and upwards.
The refilling industry is thriving.
-Soren.
My dad still has the empty 1998 Richebourg that we drank together for his 65th birthday. So at least that one is accounted for,.
Ok, here is a true counterfeiter DIY set. Capsule gently cut, easy to re-glue.
DRC 2000 Richebourg empty bottle and capsule for sale at £500 !! Not sold yet.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Richebourg-DRC-2000-Empty-Bottle-/131809373998?hash=item1eb0736f2e:g:mPIAAOSwX~dWiWxd
And from same seller. (Lots of bottles : Petrus and…)
La Chapelle 1961, empty, w. cork. and gently cut cap. Wow only £2,500 ! - - It’s empty dude !!!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hermitage-La-Chapellle-Paul-Jaboulet-Aine-1961-Empty-Wine-Bottle-/131809382650?hash=item1eb07390fa:g:qxQAAOSwaA5WiXY4
Or a £1000 for Richebourg 1993 mag. no. 00068
Amazing…
Maybe seller has connections w. restaurants ?
-Soren.
Update The empty Romanee Conti 2004 sold for €822+60(postage) = $1,015. -Everybody’s happy.
And a new eBay seller, has a nice 1982 Petrus, full cap and cork. price £500 (no auction, just sales.)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Petrus-1982-Empty-Bottle-Including-Cork-/191868878953?hash=item2cac46c069:g:TW8AAOSwa-dWh~ya
And also a favorite of mine, Armand Rousseau, Chambertin 1996, only £150 for this fine empty.
-Soren.
FYI, log into ebay and hit the “report” item link on the right side above the description on these. I flagged as “encouraging illegal activity”. If enough people do this they might pull the auctions…
Just wondering, but if I were a so inclined counterfeiter, I would certainly consider selling “empties” on ebay compared to the hassle and risk (albeit at much higher dollar return) of trying to auction full bottles. How many people are going to hire an expert to vet the empty bottle that they are probably going to use fraudulently?
And this seller, offering a total 11 empty bottles of Petrus, 4x1985, 4x1989, 3x1990. (£1,800)
Just pour in some cheap, aged pom and a spoon full of Taylor 2000, re-cork, red shiny caps, - and poof - all drunk in Las Vegas, by some steamy high rollers. Then the bottles are picked up again, and the circle is complete.
It’s easy to imagine these smaller Rudy-clones, working in their sheds at night…
-Soren.
If it’s that easy I’m going to make myself some Petrus for self consumption 
Yep. - Just remember also to be a steamy high roller.
Saw this the other day on eBay, and my mind went straight to your topic.
But what if they were GLS approved?!
This is getting out of control - can never trust gray market high end wines again.
That’s going to be a bit difficult…
This eBay seller made me laugh !
Empty Petrus 1985. (£150)
He honestly explains the always very important provenance, of an empty bottle :
“Selling an empty Petrus bottle 1985 vintage. This bottle has been kept in America for several years, then rested in Asia and flew to London in 2016 to be consumed.
There is no cork but foil and it has been professionally decanted.
Excellent conditions. White label. Immaculate.”
Note the words “Professionally decanted” meaning, gently cut capsule, with minimal damage. Easy to re-attach.
Att. SteveG.
A seller, actually sells these “counterfeit empties”.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rare-Vtg-Wine-Bottle-Lot-1945-ROTHSCHILD-Musigny-Grand-Cru-HEIDSIECK-MONOPOLE-/272238061254?hash=item3f62a726c6:g:1CQAAOSw3zxXMK~m
And the price is low for a famous Mouton R 1945.
Probably a primitive scan-copy-laserprint. The bottles are, as told by seller, the modern types.
And the Burg label on Bdx bottle… Fair enough.
I am not affraid of these laser printed labels/bottles being filled and sold, but a naive collector, with bad eyesight could be fooled by the MR 1945, in the right setup.
-Soren.
I’m not sure wjat is the point of this thread… I guess you could have an entire forum dedicated to tracking empties and still you would not account for much of what is sold.
Soren, are you ITB with an interest in this? Just asking because it looks like you’re on some kind of crusade…
Alain
Hi Alain.
I’m not ITB, or have any professional connections.
Just a passionate collector of fine wine, getting angry, when I see public foul play, concerning My hobby.
We all know these empties are an important part of the counterfeit business, and nobody seems to know the extend.
I was surprised My self, when I checked eBay only for a few hours, and found all the above.
That’s why it maybe looks a bit crusade-like.
I just couldn’t close My eyes, and pretend there was no illness.
Kind regards, Soren.
OK thanks for your response, and sorry if I sounded a bit rude in my previous post.
I’m not following much the new around counterfeiting apart from the Rudy thread or other similar ones that Don Cornwell posts here. Posts that I read with great interest because I like the Sherlock aspects of it.
But I would think that most of the counterfeiting is done with support from insiders in restaurants etc. The sheer volume of available empties dwarfs what you could find on eBay IMO.
Alain