A case of Lafite Rothschild 1990 will be among the wines auctioned.
Christie’s said it would auction 2,474 bottles from the private cellar of Jörg G. Bucherer with a total estimated value of £1m.
Magnums of legendary Château Haut-Brion 1989 are among the highlights of the sale. Other Bordeaux lots include 12-bottle cases of Le Pin, Cheval Blanc and Lafite Rothschild from the highly rated 1990 vintage.
Famous Burgundy domaines, such as Leroy, plus 312 bottles of Spanish wine, including Vega Sicilia, will also be part of the auction, to run online from 16 to 30 April.
Bucherer, who died aged 87 in 2023, was the third-generation head of his family’s luxury watch and jewellery retailer, which he sold to Rolex shortly prior to his passing.
Once described as a secretive billionaire by Fortune magazine, Bucherer was not known to give media interviews.
He was an avid wine lover, however. Based in Lucerne, he would reportedly bring two bottles from his collection when dining at a favourite restaurant in the Swiss city, and offer any remaining contents to staff, said Christie’s, citing an unnamed waiter.
His collection enters a market that has seen fine wine prices fall over the past two-and-a-half years, although single-owner sales can be particularly highly prized by bidders due to enhanced visibility on wines’ provenance.
Christie said Bucherer’s collection in Lucerne was stored under optimal natural conditions, with all wines kept in their original wooden cases.
A second collection was held in a purpose-built, climate-controlled cellar at Bucherer’s Marbella estate, which also has a kitchen designed as a copy of that used by Andalusian chef Dani García – after the pair met.
Auction proceeds will go to the Jörg G Bucherer Foundation, a charitable organisation that was recently established to benefit a range of causes, including the creative arts, natural sciences, welfare for disabled children in Switzerland and improving retirement home places in Lucerne.
Christie’s will offer 238 lots in the sale, with highlights expected to include:
Six magnums of Château Haut-Brion 1989 | Estimate: £16,000 to £20,000
12 bottles of Le Pin 1990 | £28,000 to £35,000
12 bottles of Domaine Leroy, Romanée-St-Vivant 1999 | £45,000 to £60,000
All in original wooden cases.
Despite relatively difficult market conditions, Tim Triptree MW, international director for wine and spirits at Christie’s, told Decanter recently that results from the group’s first London sale of 2025 had been ‘extremely encouraging’, and demonstrated ‘continued high demand among global collectors for the finest and rarest wines’.
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Source : https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/nearly-2500-rare-wines-of-bucherer-watch-pioneer-up-for-auction-553087/
