Cult Wines partnered with Olivier Bernstein to offer the ‘ultra-rare’ jeroboam from the 2017 vintage via its new CultX digital trading platform.
An auction hammer price of £57,000 ($69,000) was just under the pre-sale high estimate of £60,000.
Cult Wines said the jeroboam set a new benchmark price for Romanée-St-Vivant grand cru and was sold for the equivalent of £14,250 per 75cl bottle – again demonstrating the strength of the market for high-end Burgundy wines.
‘Given the scarcity of top Burgundy wines it comes as no surprise that this jeroboam achieved such a staggering sum, putting it firmly in the company of iconic producers like Domaine Leroy and Domaine de la Romanée-Conti,’ said Tom Gearing, CEO and cofounder of Cult Wines.
‘Despite the global macro-environment, we continue to see high demand from investors and collectors around the world to acquire the rarest and most exclusive fine wines,’ he said.
Cult Wines said a 37-year-old entrepreneur from Malta submitted the winning bid for the Olivier Bernstein bottle with two minutes left in the auction. The buyer did not wish to be named, it said.
A non-fungible token (NFT) was issued to the buyer of the jeroboam, to help guarantee provenance and authenticity of the wine, as well as certify ownership, said Cult Wines.
Cult added that the buyer and five guests of their choice were also entitled to join Olivier Bernstein at his property in Beaune for a wine-paired dinner.
A limited amount of numbered, hand-signed bottles and magnums of Olivier Bernstein Romanée-St-Vivant 2017 were set to be available via CultX in late September, when the trading platform is set for public launch.
Wines offered via CultX will have NFTs attached to them and Cult Wines said the mobile-friendly, online platform is designed to help collectors build, track and manage fine wine portfolios.
The group told Decanter that it was looking at the possibility of potentially offering one-off cuvées from other grand cru vineyards.
