Press Release New York For Immediate Release New York +1 212 606 7176 Dan Abernethy dan.abernethy@sothebys.com London I +44 207 293 6000 I Mitzi Mina I mitzi.mina@sothebys.com Worldwide 2009 Wine Sales at Sotheby s Exceed $41 million Serena Sutcliffe MW in Hong Kong ahead of the Classic Cellar from A Great American Collector auction in October 2009 Fourth Highest Total Ever Asian Demand Drives Successful Year with 57% of wine by value Selling to Asian Collectors Online Bidding Brings New Collectors to Sotheby s Wine Sales 15 December 2009 Sotheby s completed its final wine sale of 2009 last week, bringing the total for wine auctions this year to $41,755,284 ( 26,609,300). The year ended with the sale of two magnificent private collections in London that fetched 1.8 million - the highest total for a London wine sale in 2009. Sales in New York concluded at the end of November with the auction that featured wine direct from Bodegas Vega Sicilia. That sale totaled $2.2 million and included the highest price for a single wine lot this year, the $102,850 paid for the David Alvarez Vega Sicilia vertical by a South American collector bidding live online. This has been an extraordinary year for wine sales at Sotheby s with the
introduction of live online bidding, the start of regular sales in Hong Kong, the sale of Wine Direct from the Cellars of Château Cheval Blanc and the sale of the first three parts of The Classic Cellar from a Great American Collector, one of the greatest wine collections that Sotheby s has ever sold. Discussing Sotheby s wine sales in 2009 Serena Sutcliffe MW, Sotheby s Worldwide Head of Wine, said: This year will be remembered as the one in which Asian collectors overtook the US in the purchase of fine wine at auction. The demand for top vintages from the very best Châteaux has been so consistently strong this year that our sales, with only one exception, have achieved totals above their top estimates. The highlights in New York and Hong Kong have clearly been the two major private cellars from the US that have been so well received by collectors in Hong Kong and China. In London the sale of wine direct from the cellars of Château Cheval Blanc in June and the sale of in aid of the Charles Albert Frère Foundation in October, which both achieved spectacular results, stand out as particular highlights. In 2010 we shall continue to focus on offering wines from established private collections, in the very best condition and with exceptional provenance, selling them in our three salerooms. Stephen Mould, Senior Director of Sotheby s Wine Department, at the June sale in London auctioning a collection of over 1,000 bottles that had never before left the cellars of Château Cheval Blanc, the collection sold for 643,689 double the pre sale low estimate. Jamie Ritchie, Head of Sotheby s Wine Department in North America auctioneering at the sale of The Classic Cellar from A Great American Collector in Hong Kong. 2
Asian Demand Drives up Sale Totals As can be seen in the following chart, in 2009 Asian collectors have become the most important buyers at Sotheby s wine sales worldwide Buyers in Worldwide Wine Sales 20% 3% 20% 57% Asia EU NA SA In Hong Kong all three wine sales soared well over their high estimates and were effectively 100% sold; an exceptionally rare auction achievement. Buyers in these sales were predominantly Asian, with roughly 40% coming from Hong Kong, 40% from China, around 10% from Taiwan, with other countries in both Asia and elsewhere making up the remaining 10%. Interestingly, less than 1% of the wine sold was bought by US collectors. The five New York sales in this year achieved $12.7 million, over the high estimate of $11 million. In addition to buying wine in Hong Kong, Asian collectors have also been very active in these New York sales. In 2009, 32% of wine sold at Sotheby s New York was bought by Asian collectors, up from 4% just four years ago. All but one of the ten sales held at Sotheby s London this year surpassed the high estimate. At 1,509 ($2,394) per lot, the average lot value for wine sold at Sotheby s London this year was the second highest ever. Similarly, sell through rates in London sales were stronger than ever before - 98% by value. Asian activity was exceptionally strong in London, just as it was elsewhere: 44% of wine sold by value through Sotheby s London this year up to November 2009 was sold to Asian buyers. London sales for 2009 concluded on December 9 with the highest-totaling wine auction of the year in London making Sotheby s the dominant wine auction house in the UK. The 840 lot sale, featuring two magnificent collections, realised a total of 1,794,495. This remarkable result brings the total for Sotheby s London wine sales for 2009 to 9,297,980 3
million making for more than 100% increase in wine sales in London over the last 5 years. 2009 in London was also marked by two remarkable single-owner sales: - The collection from the cellars of Château Cheval Blanc (June 09), which realized 643,689 double the presale low estimate. 93% of the lots exceeded high estimate - Wine from the Collection of Baron Frère (September 09), the sale realized 1,149,311, well in excess of high estimate and proceeds from the sale were donated to the Charles Albert Frère Foundation. Worldwide Wine Buyers by Nationality and Sale Location $14,000,000 $12,000,000 $10,000,000 $8,000,000 $6,000,000 $4,000,000 Asia EU NA SA $2,000,000 $0 London NY HK Live Online Bidding This year also saw the introduction of regular live online bidding meaning that collectors can participate over the internet with a live audio and video feed. The response has been enormously positive. Indeed, the highest price for a single wine lot this year, the $102,850 paid for the David Alvarez Vega Sicilia vertical, was purchased by a live online bidder. Talking about live online bidding Jamie Ritchie, Sotheby s Head of Wine in North America said: Live online bidding is an innovation that has been very well received and many collectors have taken advantage of participating in our auctions from their homes, offices or hotel rooms. Our ability to take the saleroom to the client in this way has opened up bidding to many more people and added an extra element to our auctions. To sell our top lot of the year to someone bidding live online shows the potential of this exciting new way for collectors to take part in our sales. Live online bidding was most popular in Hong Kong where the 4 October sale saw 67% of the lots receive bids in this way and over $380,000 of wine purchased online. In London nearly half the lots in the 11 November sale were competed 4
for by online bidders and at the most recent sale in New York wine with a value of $335,000 was won by collectors bidding live online. Notes to Editors For a detailed breakdown of the results from each Wine sale at Sotheby s and the top selling lots this year please see the sheets that accompany this release. # # # 5