The World’s Former Best Restaurant is Now Putting it’s Cellar up for Auction

 

To fully understand the current Romanée-Conti fad, let’s retrace its legend. The Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is cultivated on a lone plot of 1.63 acres, precisely chosen and maintained since the 13th century. In close to ten centuries, this vineyard has had only 9 owners including Prince Louis-François de Bourbon, the prince of Conti who bequeathed his name in 1760. This wine comes from a fine pinot noir characteristic of the climate. Aubert de Villaine has managed the plot for close to 40 years now and adopted a humble philosophy that pays respect to the earth. What is extracted from the earth must be given back to it, and so chemicals are prohibited and mechanical instruments are limited. They’ve even recently brought back the use of horses so as to be less destructive. The climactic conditions and upkeep of the lands give this wine its special flavor. This plot of land is so renowned that one man threatened to contaminate it if the owners didn’t give him 1,000,000€. Luckily, he was later thwarted.

 

With its majestic tradition, favorable climactic conditions, and now its “biodynamic” winemaking techniques, the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is recognized by many specialists as yielding the best red wine in the world. The proof is that the best restaurant in the world in the 2000s, elBulli, chose to complement its dishes with it. This 50-seat establishment overseen by chef Ferran Adrià, father of molecular gastronomy, was attributed 3 Michelin stars but decided to close up shop in order to dedicate himself to the elBulli foundation.

 

After the first auction on April 3rd in Hong Kong, a second one took place in New York on April 26th, collectively racking up the respective sums of $1.4 million and $913,605. The proceeds – $700,000 for the second auction alone – will benefit elBulli’s organization that aims to open a restaurant in 2014 to allow chefs to create and innovate. Amongst the lots were 3 bottles of 1990 Romanée-Conti that went for more than $72,000. This auction has also showcased the interest that Asian buyers – most notably high-ranking Chinese officials – have for Romanée-Conti wines. This coupled with a growing economic power account for the fact the 7 of the 10 most prestigious lots were taken home by Asian buyers. Romanée-Conti may not show off their excellence with pomp like their counterparts, but they’ve still imposed themselves through their modesty-imbued work and respect for nature, offering in the meantime the most prestigious wine in the world.