A COLLECTION of vintage wines from Chris de Burgh’s private cellar has sold for more than £345,000 (€394,000) at Christie’s in London.
The set of 320 bottles and 84 magnums of mainly red wines had been expected to fetch about £200,000 (€235,000).
The star lot was the singer’s complete collection of Château Mouton Rothschild vintages from 1945 to the present. The 62-magnum “vertical” set sold yesterday for £155,250 (€177,325), easily surpassing the guide of £90,000 (€103,000). The price set a world record for a magnum collection of postwar vintages after a competitive bidding race from around the globe, according to Christie’s.
A self-confessed oenophile, de Burgh recently told Decantermagazine he had become so attached to some of the bottles in his Enniskerry cellar that he felt it would be "almost sacrilegious" to drink them, and it was time for someone else to enjoy them.
His favourite and most-prized lot was a case of Château Lafite Rothschild 1945, containing the original straw bedding placed in the box at the end of the second World War, which sold for £12,650 (€13,700).
“I’m thrilled at the success of my wine auction through Christie’s and glad all the wines have found new homes,” de Burgh, who is on tour in Germany, said yesterday.
In the auction catalogue, de Burgh said he had been thinking of selling for some time.
“Obviously, I’m looking at the economics of the wine trade and how the business of selling wine fluctuates, but it seems to be on the up at the moment.”
The singer admitted his decision to sell was influenced by his wife, Diane, and his daughter, former Miss World Rosanna Davison, who share a preference for white wine.
