More auction madness

I was tuning in to the Acker live auction this morning and literally every one of the first ~50 lots was won by the same bidder (paddle 9078). I have seen some crazy stuff at auctions before but not like this. I guess I am done for the day on this one.

Someone really likes Bordeaux.

Also Burgundy. Still going strong at lot 86. La Tache '78 just hammered for $12K, $4K over high estimate.

Lot 146, a single bottle of '62 Bonnes Mares just hammered for $45K (estimate $5-7K) to another lucky bidder. So I guess even 9078 has their limits. But by my count they captured 152 of the first 155 lots of BDX and red Burgundy. The auctioneers are enjoying this very much. I want to look away, but I can’t stop watching now.

Russian oligarchs frantically trying to convert their liquid assets into liquid assets?

Guess someone’s building a store on the cheap.

check your phone for a second and look what happens…

yeah, I think the Russian guess is a really good one, 9078 is still going . . . buying the Cali stuff as well

can you enlighten the rest of the common folk?

i wanted that 62 bonnes mares too

Maybe 9078 knows that they need to reintroduce some of the capital they have stored up back into the economy and this is their chosen avenue. Stepping up the pricing on Bordeaux and Burgundy and building(or increasing) a cellar all at one fell swoop. Thanks!

I think Michael may have been making a joke about how he got distracted and wasn’t able to win all the lots.

The good news for anyone else wishing to play in this auction is that it seems 9078 is not interested in the “Kingsman’s” lots. They appear to have only bid on the John Tilson collection.

Is it too late to enter a mixed lot of my misfit singles into the middle of this auction.

The DRC is going for more than WSP low… before BP…

Yes, I’m guessing it’s as simple as that. All the “Russian oligarch” stuff is always amusing to me given how silly wine pricing is compared to the cost of an expensive yacht.

It better not be someone bidding on behalf of an oligarch, or Acker is in a level of trouble that makes Rudy-gate look like small potatoes.

I haven’t been looking at this auction but I find this behavior really weird. If you have a $million or two that you want to convert into a nice wine cellar, why buy this way? Call any of the majors and ask them to convert your million $$ into wine and they would be delighted to oblige. Maybe this is the best way to get back vintage wine at volume, but I really doubt it.

Is it? I’ve never gotten a 1099 from a consignment…

The nice thing about wine is that it’s not really individually identifiable. A case of ‘05 Petrus is a case of Petrus. It’s not “Igor’s” case of Petrus.

Tilson’s collection was exceptional, that’s why.

It is our distinct honor to present in lots 1-280, The ExceptionalCellar of John Tilson. Mr. Tilson has worn many hats through the years including being a prominent investment manager, longtime wine collector, and owner, founder, and editor of The Underground Wine Letter. John’s sincere passion for wine and his outstanding wine tasting prowess is matched only by his lifelong appreciation for the finer things in life, which led him around the globe to experience the world’s finest restaurants and unparalleled wine cellars. Back in the 1970s, he was welcomed at the top Chateaux in Bordeaux and the best Domaines in Burgundy and beyond, and he tasted many vintages straight from the barrel. He was among the first to convince California wineries to allow him to do the same, obtaining the keys to the cellar of some of the most iconic Napa Valley estates. Among Mr. Tilson’s carefully chosen selections on offer, we have three dozen lots of mature Bordeaux, more than 140 lots of Red Burgundy centering around sixty-five selections of Domaine de la Romanee Conti, forty plus lots of White Burgundy, and more than three dozen plus selections of truly Classic Cali focusing on Diamond Creek, Heitz, Inglenook, and Ridge. Exceptional is an understatement. This is a collection built over decades of a love for wine. There are not many collections like these around anymore!