TOP 10 WINES IN THE WORLD
TOP 10 WINES IN THE WORLD
The world of wine is full of surprises. Nature shapes the character of vintages differently each year. Grape varieties and wine styles ride trends; regions ascend or decline. Capturing the character of the past year is the goal of Wine Spectator’s annual Top 10.
1. Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 – $500,000
This is the Grand Royale of all the most expensive wines out there. In a Napa valley wine auction in 2000, this wine got the highest bid, with a whopping price tag of around $500,000.
One wine connoisseur described the wine as: “Exceptionally impressive. Sensational nose of jammy blackcurrants and subtle toasty oak. Stunningly proportioned, ripe, intense fruit, full body, great purity… inner-core of sweet, creamy, highly extracted blackcurrant/cassis fruit. Spectacular.”
2. Chateau Margaux 1787 – $500,000
Known as the most expensive wine never to be sold, this wine’s initial price was around $500,000. It was authenticated to be once part of the wine collection of Thomas Jefferson.
Chateau Margaux 1787 was accidentally shattered in a Margaux Dinner by a waiter who knocked the bottle over and broke it. Insurers paid out around $225,000.
3. Chateau Lafite 1787 – $160,000
A bottle of Chateau Lafite 1787 that was linked to Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was sold to Malcolm Forbes in 1985 for $160,000. Despite issues over the provenance of the wine and link to Jefferson, this wine is among the most expensive single bottles of wine ever sold.
4. Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1951 – $38,420
At $38,420 per bottle, Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1951 is considered the most expensive Australian wine. According to reports, there are just 20 bottles of this wine that exists at present. In May 2004, a wine collector in Adelaide shelled out a cool AUS$50,200 for a bottle at an auction house.
5. Cheval Blanc 1947 – $33,781
One of the most expensive wines in the world, Cheval Blanc 1947 enjoys the privileged status of being one of only two wines that have been awarded the Class A status in the Classification of Saint-Emilion wine. In 2006, a three-liter bottle of this fine wine was bought at Vinfolio in San Francisco for $135,125 ($33,781 per 750 ml).
6. Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon 1941 – $24,675
Sold in 2004 for $24,675, this Cabernet is owned by Francis Ford Coppola. According to Coppola himself it was one of the best he’d ever had. “There is a signature violet and rose petal aroma that completes this amazingly well-preserved, robust wine that had just finished fermentation at the time of Pearl Harbor.” he said.
7. Chateau Mouton-Rothschild 1945 – $23,000
The average price for a 750 ml bottle of this wine is $16,992. In 2007, a jeroboam of this wine, regarded as one of the greatest vintages of the previous century—was sold to a bidder at Sotheby’s New York. The price? An astounding $310,700 or almost $77,675 per 750-ml bottle. A decade earlier, a jeroboam of this fine wine was bought by an anonymous bidder at Christie’s, London. The $114,614 price-tag is almost equal to $23,000 per 750 ml.
8. Domaine de la Romanee-Conti 1990 – $20,975
This wine enjoys the good reputation of the world’s finest Pinot Noir. Production is limited due to the strict yields but also because of the desire to capture the luscious fruit flavors in the berries. This wine is produced on a tiny parcel of land where vines are on the average over 50 years old.
9. Chateau Lafite 1865 – $4,650
t is quite amazing that this wine, which has around 750 ml in every bottle, is authenticated to be just 150 years old. If you want a bottle of this wine, feel free to shell out around $ 24,577 (that excludes tax, of course). However, if you are really feeling magnanimous and want a double-magnum bottle of the wine, you can have it for just around $124,469.
In 2006, a double magnum of this wine was sold for a record $111,625 at a Sotheby’s auction. The average price per glass? About $4,650.
10. Chateau Margaux 2009 Balthazar – $4,062
Considered one of the best vintages ever produced by its estate, 2009 Chateau Margaux’s three 12-liter bottles are offered for US$195,000 by exclusive wine merchant Le Clos in Dubai International Airport.
Only six Balthazars have been produced, and only three of them are up for sale; all available exclusively through Le Clos. It is housed in a grand case of oak and raised on steel legs, with beautiful gold engravings by master craftsmen.
The world of wine is full of surprises. Nature shapes the character of vintages differently each year. Grape varieties and wine styles ride trends; regions ascend or decline. Capturing the character of the past year is the goal of Wine Spectator’s annual Top 10.
1. Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 – $500,000
This is the Grand Royale of all the most expensive wines out there. In a Napa valley wine auction in 2000, this wine got the highest bid, with a whopping price tag of around $500,000.
One wine connoisseur described the wine as: “Exceptionally impressive. Sensational nose of jammy blackcurrants and subtle toasty oak. Stunningly proportioned, ripe, intense fruit, full body, great purity… inner-core of sweet, creamy, highly extracted blackcurrant/cassis fruit. Spectacular.”
2. Chateau Margaux 1787 – $500,000
Known as the most expensive wine never to be sold, this wine’s initial price was around $500,000. It was authenticated to be once part of the wine collection of Thomas Jefferson.
Chateau Margaux 1787 was accidentally shattered in a Margaux Dinner by a waiter who knocked the bottle over and broke it. Insurers paid out around $225,000.
3. Chateau Lafite 1787 – $160,000
A bottle of Chateau Lafite 1787 that was linked to Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was sold to Malcolm Forbes in 1985 for $160,000. Despite issues over the provenance of the wine and link to Jefferson, this wine is among the most expensive single bottles of wine ever sold.
4. Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1951 – $38,420
At $38,420 per bottle, Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1951 is considered the most expensive Australian wine. According to reports, there are just 20 bottles of this wine that exists at present. In May 2004, a wine collector in Adelaide shelled out a cool AUS$50,200 for a bottle at an auction house.
5. Cheval Blanc 1947 – $33,781
One of the most expensive wines in the world, Cheval Blanc 1947 enjoys the privileged status of being one of only two wines that have been awarded the Class A status in the Classification of Saint-Emilion wine. In 2006, a three-liter bottle of this fine wine was bought at Vinfolio in San Francisco for $135,125 ($33,781 per 750 ml).
6. Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon 1941 – $24,675
Sold in 2004 for $24,675, this Cabernet is owned by Francis Ford Coppola. According to Coppola himself it was one of the best he’d ever had. “There is a signature violet and rose petal aroma that completes this amazingly well-preserved, robust wine that had just finished fermentation at the time of Pearl Harbor.” he said.
7. Chateau Mouton-Rothschild 1945 – $23,000
The average price for a 750 ml bottle of this wine is $16,992. In 2007, a jeroboam of this wine, regarded as one of the greatest vintages of the previous century—was sold to a bidder at Sotheby’s New York. The price? An astounding $310,700 or almost $77,675 per 750-ml bottle. A decade earlier, a jeroboam of this fine wine was bought by an anonymous bidder at Christie’s, London. The $114,614 price-tag is almost equal to $23,000 per 750 ml.
8. Domaine de la Romanee-Conti 1990 – $20,975
This wine enjoys the good reputation of the world’s finest Pinot Noir. Production is limited due to the strict yields but also because of the desire to capture the luscious fruit flavors in the berries. This wine is produced on a tiny parcel of land where vines are on the average over 50 years old.
9. Chateau Lafite 1865 – $4,650
t is quite amazing that this wine, which has around 750 ml in every bottle, is authenticated to be just 150 years old. If you want a bottle of this wine, feel free to shell out around $ 24,577 (that excludes tax, of course). However, if you are really feeling magnanimous and want a double-magnum bottle of the wine, you can have it for just around $124,469.
In 2006, a double magnum of this wine was sold for a record $111,625 at a Sotheby’s auction. The average price per glass? About $4,650.
10. Chateau Margaux 2009 Balthazar – $4,062
Considered one of the best vintages ever produced by its estate, 2009 Chateau Margaux’s three 12-liter bottles are offered for US$195,000 by exclusive wine merchant Le Clos in Dubai International Airport.
Only six Balthazars have been produced, and only three of them are up for sale; all available exclusively through Le Clos. It is housed in a grand case of oak and raised on steel legs, with beautiful gold engravings by master craftsmen.
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