Fine wine news

A console of Chateaux Haut-Brion has been the top-selling lot in the wine category at a major charity auction.

The lot, which included eight rare vintages including the 1935, 1945, 1961 and 1990, and displayed in a case designed by Viscount Linley, fetched $1.1 million (£0.7 million) at the event at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Florida.

All of the money will go to the Naples Children & Education Foundation, which supports under-privileged and vulnerable children in Florida.

The auction takes place every year during the Naples Winter Wine Festival and has raised $106.7 million in 12 years.

Other wines sold at the auction included 35 bottles of Haut-Brion from vintages spanning 84 years, which sold for $320,000, the Drinks Business reported.

A total of 67 lots went for between $35,000 and $1.2 million, including the chance to have a private concert by singer LeAnn Rimes, a Baltic Sea cruise and tickets to Wimbledon.

Posted by Brian Hughes