Bordeaux | Burgundy | Sauternes | Champagne | Port | Cognac | Whisky | Corkscrews


Tennants’ Fine Wine and Whisky Department is headed by Mark Littler. The department specialises in auctioneering fine, collectable and affordable wines, champagne, port, madeira, cognac, whisky and corkscrews. These markets have grown rapidly over the past decade and buyers from across the globe are trying to secure cases of the finest vintages. Strong interest from Chinese buyers has driven prices to record highs, making the current climate a great time to sell anything from a single bottle to a whole collection.

Tennants Auctioneers have specialist Fine Wine and Whisky sales throughout the year, with targeted online marketing, indexed printed catalogues and a substantial mailing list. Commission rates are very competitive and we are even able to sell wine that is still in bond.
 

Whether you are looking to learn the value of your cellar or just find out how much a single bottle is worth, Tennants can help you with a valuation. You are welcome to provide a list by email, post or fax, just include the name, vintage and quantity of the wine you have.

Please contact Mark Littler on 01969 623780 or mark.littler@tennants-ltd.co.uk


Bordeaux

Bordeaux is synonymous with expensive French wine. The region’s top Chateaux have been held in high regard since 1855 when the various Chateaux of the region were categorised according to their quality. Chateau Lafite, Chateau Latour, Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Chateau Haut-Brion and Chateau Margaux are the official “first growth” wines, and these are some of the most expensive. A single bottle of 1959 Chateau Latour was sold for over £1000 in our last sale, and this bottle from 1995 consigned for our next sale is valued at £100-200. However, as many people are aware, a good vintage may be a perquisite to high value, and a modern vintage can be more valuable than an older one. For example, a bottle of 2005 Chateau Latour is worth £400-600, some £300 more than aforementioned bottle from 1995. 

However, the most prestigious wines from Bordeaux are from Chateaux not included in the 1855 classification. Chateau Petrus and Chateau Le Pin hold records for the most valuable bottle. A single bottle of 2005 Petrus recently sold at auction for over £2,000. The price of Petrus has been elevated beyond other wines from Bordeaux as it is the favourite drink of the investment bankers and has been elevated from a wine to a status symbol.




Burgundy

Napoleon once said “Nothing makes the future look so rosy as to contemplate it through a glass of Chambertin”, and despite Bordeaux dominance in the headlines Burgundy is often held in higher regard by wine aficionados. After years of collecting top Bordeaux, wealthy Chinese buyers are now filling their cellars with the very best Burgundy. 

The best Burgundy is produced by Domaine De La Romanee Conti and their various plots in the vineyards in the region. Prices from wine from their own vineyard, Romanee Conti, frequently make tens of thousands, and a case from 1990 selling for over £105,000! All of the wine they produce (Romanee Conti, La Tache and Richebourg), command high prices. Unfortunately the bottle of 1983 Richebourg pictured is a lesson of how not to care for a label. If the label had been in good condition, it may have made £400-600. In its current condition it is now estimate at £100-200.




Sauternes

Often overlooked, but now proving to be a prudent investment, top wines from the Sauterne and Barsac region of Bordeaux are now high in demand. Chateau Yquem, Chateau Rieussec and Chateau Coutet are the most sought after and, as with any bottle of wine, the condition of the label as well as the contents, is vitally important. The two bottles of Chateau Yquem have slightly damaged labels, and as such they will not appeal to the most stringent collection, but will still make £150-250.




Champagne

Appealing to those who want to impress, and endorsed by many pop culture celebrities, Cristal champagne is always popular at auction. Louis Roederer, who produce Cristal, make vintage and non-vintage varieties, with the vintage verities commanding a higher price. The two bottles here have an estimate of £200-300, a fraction of the price one would have to pay in a bar or restaurant.

The true champagne crown belongs to Krug, with large format bottles such as magnums or jeroboams bringing a premium. Dom Perignon is also highly sought after, and many people ‘cash in’ their expensive champagne gifts in favour of several cheaper bottles.




Port

Unlike wine, port is very stable when cellared; a hundred year old bottle will still be fantastic to drink if cellar conditions have been favourable. We recently sold a bottle of Cockburn from 1912 for £350. 

The most sought after vintages include 1955, 1963 and 1970, with cases of twelve bottles from these years selling for £700 plus. Often a single bottle of Port has been purchased to mark a special occasion, and even these single bottles can fetch over £100. A typical bottle of Dow from 1963 will make between £60-100.




Cognac

The most expensive single bottle from the last Fine Wine and Whisky sale was in fact a bottle of cognac, realising an astonishing £2,000, which equated to over £90 for a single measure! However, this was no ordinary Cognac; pre-dating The Battle of Waterloo, the vines that produced the grapes were before the Phylloxera outbreak of the late 19^th century. In order to fight the disease, non-native vines from America were grafted onto the ancient vines in France, changing the genetic makeup of the vines forever.

Cognac does not have to be ancient to be valuable. These bottles from best region of Grande Champagne have an estimate of £200-300, and many bottles with good labels from the turn of the century commonly sell for hundreds of pounds.

 

Whisky

Very much a burgeoning market, Whisky can be divided into two categories; old vintage bottles and modern limited editions.

Vintage bottles are in great demand. Whisky that was purchased for the supermarket in the late 1970’s, no different to what is available today, can often sell for £300-400 a bottle. A bottle of Bowmore from the 1970’s sold for nearly £700 in our first Whisky sale. I urge people to raid their drinks cabinets to see if you have any of these little treasures gathering dust. Even this bottle of Highland Park is only 10 years old and is commanding a premium because the packaging has recently changed. This bottle has an estimate of £50-80 despite it being purchased for only £15 in 1993. 

             

 

Vintage bottles are good, but limited edition bottles are better. Such editions, like this bottle of Bowmore Bicentenary, is worth £400-600, and a bottle of Black Bowmore can make over £2,000. Many distillers are producing numerous modern editions to commemorate events such as Royal Weddings, like this bottle of The Macallan celebrating the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diane Spencer. As with wine, mature whisky with an age over 15 years commands a premium. We have sold bottles of The Macallan 25 year old for £700, and a bottle of Macallan 30 year old with a rare blue label made £650 in the last Whisky sale.

 
Corkscrews

No wine can be enjoyed without the humble corkscrew, and our Collectables specialist Nick Lambert knows this market well.  These two corkscrews here look very similar, both belonging to the Kings Patent family of corkscrews, yet have a divide of over £2,000 in price.

The corkscrew on the left is the most typical variant of this type, complete with brush (for cleaning the capsule and cork) and applied coat of arms, and has an estimate of £200-300.  The corkscrew on the right looks similar, but is much rarer due to the prongs protruding from the bottom.  In good condition, this example could easily make £3000.  Unfortunately, it is in poor condition, missing both a prong and the brush, and therefore only has an estimate of £400-600.