The Antique Wine Company
Encyclopedia
The Antique Wine Company is a wine
merchant specialising in fine and rare wines, based in London. It was founded by Stephen Williams in 1982 and now has over 20,000 clients in 70 countries. Since the start the company has specialised in exceptionally fine wine and currently holds over 10,000 bottles of the world's finest vintages in its cellars.
The company is known for record breaking wine collections and fine wine events. Its range of services includes: sourcing rare wines, private wine master classes and cellar planning.
David Linley, The Antique Wine Company has created the Grand Chateau Series. These handcrafted wine cabinets with architectural models of the top nine chateaux in Bordeaux
each contain 18 bottles from the corresponding estate, produced during the 20th and 21st centuries.
The Château d'Yquem
model is accompanied by a vertical collection of Chateau d’Yquem, spanning 141 consecutive vintages starting from 1868. This collection also includes several letters and memorabilia from the Château archives. It is valued at £1m. The other chateaux are each priced at £149,000.
In 2006 The Antique Wine Company sold a 135-year vertical collection (containing every vintage from 1860 to 2003) for $1.5 million, one of the highest prices ever paid for a single lot of wine.
, The Antique Wine Company provides a wine authentification service. The glass in the bottles is tested by ion beam analysis
. By analysing the X-rays emitted when bottles are placed under an ion beam produced by a particle accelerator
, researchers can verify the age of the bottle.
. The bottle will go on display in one of Mr Vanneque's two restaurants in Bali, the SIP Sunset Grill. But ultimately Mr Vanneque plans to drink his purchase. "I will never resell it, I'm not a fancy collector. I'm not rich. I work very hard. This is important that it's not connected to investing. I'm a sommelier. Wine is for drinking."
wine auction in Beaune
, France
. Known as La Pièce de la Président, the lot consisted of 460 litres of Corton
red wine from the Clos du Roi Grand Cru vineyard
. The lot was auctioned off by actor
Christian Clavier
and model
Inès de la Fressange
for €110,000.
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
merchant specialising in fine and rare wines, based in London. It was founded by Stephen Williams in 1982 and now has over 20,000 clients in 70 countries. Since the start the company has specialised in exceptionally fine wine and currently holds over 10,000 bottles of the world's finest vintages in its cellars.
The company is known for record breaking wine collections and fine wine events. Its range of services includes: sourcing rare wines, private wine master classes and cellar planning.
Grand Chateau Series
Together with cabinet maker ViscountViscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
David Linley, The Antique Wine Company has created the Grand Chateau Series. These handcrafted wine cabinets with architectural models of the top nine chateaux in Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
each contain 18 bottles from the corresponding estate, produced during the 20th and 21st centuries.
The Château d'Yquem
Château d'Yquem
Château d'Yquem is a Premier Cru Supérieur wine from the Sauternes, Gironde region in the southern part of the Bordeaux vineyards known as Graves. In the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, Château d'Yquem was the only Sauternes given this rating, indicating its perceived superiority...
model is accompanied by a vertical collection of Chateau d’Yquem, spanning 141 consecutive vintages starting from 1868. This collection also includes several letters and memorabilia from the Château archives. It is valued at £1m. The other chateaux are each priced at £149,000.
In 2006 The Antique Wine Company sold a 135-year vertical collection (containing every vintage from 1860 to 2003) for $1.5 million, one of the highest prices ever paid for a single lot of wine.
Wine Verification
Cooperating with the technological transfer unit at the Centre d'Etude Nucléaire of the University of BordeauxUniversity of Bordeaux
University of Bordeaux is an association of higher education institutions in and around Bordeaux, France. Its current incarnation was established 21 March 2007. The group is the largest system of higher education schools in southwestern France. It is part of the Academy of Bordeaux.There are seven...
, The Antique Wine Company provides a wine authentification service. The glass in the bottles is tested by ion beam analysis
Ion beam analysis
Ion beam analysis is an important family of modern analytical techniques involving the use of MeV ion beams to probe the composition and obtain elemental depth profiles in the near-surface layer of solids. All IBA methods are highly sensitive and allow the detection of elements in the...
. By analysing the X-rays emitted when bottles are placed under an ion beam produced by a particle accelerator
Particle accelerator
A particle accelerator is a device that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles to high speeds and to contain them in well-defined beams. An ordinary CRT television set is a simple form of accelerator. There are two basic types: electrostatic and oscillating field accelerators.In...
, researchers can verify the age of the bottle.
World Record Wine
In July 2011 The Antique Wine Company broke the world record of the most valuable bottle of white wine ever sold. The bottle was a 1811 Chateau d'Yquem and was sold for £75,000 to former sommelier Christian VannequeChristian Vanneque
Christian Vanneque was head sommelier of La Tour d'Argent, a famous three star restaurant in Paris. He served as an expert wine taster at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. He also participated in The Judgment of Paris 30th Anniversary on the 30th anniversary of the Paris event.On July 26, 2011,...
. The bottle will go on display in one of Mr Vanneque's two restaurants in Bali, the SIP Sunset Grill. But ultimately Mr Vanneque plans to drink his purchase. "I will never resell it, I'm not a fancy collector. I'm not rich. I work very hard. This is important that it's not connected to investing. I'm a sommelier. Wine is for drinking."
Hospices de Beaune
In November 2011, The Antique Wine Company purchased the top lot at the Hospices de BeauneHospices de Beaune
The Hospices de Beaune or Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune is a former charitable almshouse in Beaune, France. It was founded in 1443 by Nicolas Rolin, chancellor of Burgundy, as a hospital for the poor and needy. The original hospital building, the Hôtel-Dieu, one of the finest examples of French...
wine auction in Beaune
Beaune
Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Cote d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Paris and Geneva.Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France and the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Known as La Pièce de la Président, the lot consisted of 460 litres of Corton
Corton
Corton may refer to:*Corton , a French wine*Corton, Suffolk, a village in England*Corton, Wiltshire, a village in England*Corton , a French Canadian meat spread*Corton , a New York City restaurant...
red wine from the Clos du Roi Grand Cru vineyard
Vineyard
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice...
. The lot was auctioned off by actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
Christian Clavier
Christian Clavier
Christian Clavier is a French actor. He is the brother of French film director Stéphane Clavier.-Biography:After his high class studies at the Neuilly Lycée Pasteur—though asserted here and there, he never studied at Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris —he started his acting career with the...
and model
Model
- Physical :* Physical model, a physical representation of an object* Scale model, a replica or prototype of an object* 3D modelling, a 3D polygonal representation of an object, usually displayed with a computer* Model aircraft* Car model...
Inès de la Fressange
Inès de la Fressange
Inès Marie Lætitia Églantine Isabelle de Seignard de La Fressange , is a French model, aristocrat and designer of fashion and perfumes. She was named to the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1998.- Biography :...
for €110,000.