Lafite 2005 leads sale of Andrew Lloyd Webber's fine wines in Hong Kong

14 Dec 2010 Paul Fraser

It looks like the renowned Phantom of the Opera composer is a great collector of wine as well as art...

Regular readers will know that Andrew Lloyd Webber, the creator of Phantom of the Opera and Cats amongst other notable shows, has already had a major impact on collectibles in recent months: he sold an important Picasso in London early in the summer.
That Picasso, the Portrait of Angel de Fernándex de Soto, is better known as The Absinthe Drinker due to the large glass of the drink which sits in front of the lugubrious subject, and is a classic of the artist's Blue Period.
It headed a vast sale of Impressionist and Modern Art at Christie's that became the biggest ever held in Britain, achieving £152.6m ($241m) with the work itself achieving £34.8m ($51.6m) for the owner's charity.
Thankfully, it seems that whilst the work may indicate Lloyd Webber's tastes in art, it does not reflect his taste in beverages, as the composer owns an impressive wine cellar of which a large part is to go under the hammer in an upcoming sale of fine wines at Sotheby's early next year.
The auction is to be held in Hong Kong, as Lloyd Webber has been paying attention to the rapid increase in the collectibles market in general and wine in particular in the region. As we've mentioned, Acker, Merrall and Condit in particular have been in full flow.
Those wines going under the hammer include a stunning 21 cases of Château Mouton Rothschild 2005, 10 cases of Château Lafite 2005, and two magnums of Domaine de la Romanée Conti. In total there are 748 lots which are expected to fetch $2.8-4.1m.
The Lafite 2005 will be particularly interesting to watch given the recent performance of Lafite in Asia. 'Lafite' sounds like 'on the way up' in Chinese, which has boosted its popularity in the country. That's without the memorabilia factor of its having belonged to the world-famous composer. It should be a strong investment.
Serena Sutcliffe, Master of Wine, Sotheby's International Head of Wine, commented: "The Andrew Lloyd Webber wine collection has seen many enthusiasms and a plethora of vintages, but the discernment and selectivity have remained a constant.
"As with all collecting, the magpie instinct can get the upper hand and there comes a time when there is no more space on the walls nor in the cellar.
"So Sotheby's has been able to 'design' a sale of such splendour that wine lovers around the globe will be able to realise their own collecting ambitions. It is a marvel that wines of this quality and excitement can now come to the market, while the owner still retains glorious drinking for gatherings of family and friends."
Lloyd Webber is no stranger to wine auctions. In 1997 a section of his cellar was sold in London, again by Sotheby's, for £3.2m ($6.1m) which was a record-breaker at the time. The latest auction will take place on January 22.

普通读者都知道，安德鲁劳埃德韦伯，在猫的歌剧院和其他显着显示幻影之间的创造者，已经有一对收藏品在最近几个月有重大影响：他在伦敦出售毕加索早期的一个重要的夏天。
这毕加索，德天使费尔南德斯德索托的肖像，是更好地为苦艾酒饮者由于喝的悲惨在主体的前面坐在大玻璃闻名，是一个艺术家的蓝色时期的经典。
它为首的佳士得的印象派与现代艺术广阔的销售，成为有史以来在英国举行的规模最大，实现与工作实现英镑三十四点八米为业主的慈善机构（$51.6米）本身一百五十二点六米英镑（$二百四十一米）。
谢天谢地，看来，虽然这项工作可能表明在艺术劳埃德韦伯的口味，它并不反映他的饮料的味道，作为作曲家拥有令人印象深刻的酒窖其中很大一部分是去下锤罚款的即将发售葡萄酒在苏富比明年年初。
此次拍卖是要在香港举行，作为劳埃德韦伯一直注重在收藏品市场快速增长，特别是一般葡萄酒的地区。正如我们已经提到，阿克尔，Merrall和康迪特特别是已经在全流量。
那些酒下前往锤包括一个惊人的21例，2005年罗斯柴尔德木桐堡，10例拉菲酒庄2005年，两对德拉的Domaine Romanée孔蒂美酒。总共有748，预计取为280 - 410万手。
在拉菲2005年将是特别有意思的手表由于拉菲在亚洲近期表现。 '拉菲'听起来就一路上扬，在中国，它推动在该国的欢迎。这是没有其拥有属于世界著名作曲家的纪念品因素。这应该是一个强劲的投资
塞雷娜萨特克利夫，酒，苏富比国际葡萄酒大师负责人表示：“安德鲁劳埃德韦伯已经看到许多葡萄酒收藏热情和过多的年份，但鉴别力和选择性仍然是一个常数。
“如同所有的收集，喜鹊的本能都占上风，有来的时候，有没有在墙壁上，还是在地窖里更多的空间。
“所以，苏富比已经能够'设计'的这些辉煌出售世界各地的葡萄酒爱好者将能够实现自己收集的野心。这是一个奇迹，这个质量和兴奋的葡萄酒现在可以进入市场，而主人仍然保留对家庭和朋友聚会喝酒的光荣。“
劳埃德韦伯是没有葡萄酒拍卖并不陌生。在1997年被卖给他的地窖节在伦敦，再由苏富比的，320万英镑（$ 6.1米），它是一个记录当时的断路器。最新的拍卖将在1月22日举行。