France’s Oldest Restaurant Auctioning off Vintage Wines and Spirits
by Susan on 12/08/09 at 11:24 am
One of the Largest Wine Cellars in the World at La Tour d'Argent
France’s famed La Tour d’Argent, the 427-year old restaurant on the Seine that boasts one of the largest wine cellars in the world, is trying to raise some much needed cash by auctioning off 18,000 bottles of assorted wine and spirits. The popular and historic eatery is hoping to make $1.5 million from the sale, which will go toward modernization of the building, including expanding the size of its wine cellars.
The auction began Monday with surprisingly encouraging sales. Six bottles of 1998 Chateau Haut-Brion white Bordeaux went for approximately $2,100 U.S. dollars, about three times what auctioneers had predicted.
La Tour d’Argent has a half-million bottles of wine and spirits in its collection. The 18,000 bottles selected for auction include all price points, ranging from a reasonable $15 a bottle, to an exquisite Cognac, dating back to 1788. The three bottles of vintage Cognac will go on the auction block Tuesday, and are expected to fetch between $6,000 and $8,000 each.
La Tour d’Argent’s wine list weighs almost 18 pounds, lists more than 15,000 wines and is over 400 pages. Andre Terrail, part of the third generation family that has run the restaurant, says they are looking forward to using the profits from the auction to expand their selection of wines from new areas of France.
So if you’re looking for a bottle of holiday cheer for a special someone, there’s still time to get in a bid!
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