Château Mouton Rothchild is a legend in wine collecting circles.

It has achieved sufficient fame to be referenced in a number of books and films. In the James Bond film Diamonds are Forever, the agent unmasks a character pretending to be a waiter by causing them to reveal that they do not know that the wine is a claret.

The 1986 vintage is particularly well-regarded. Robert Parker even gave it 100 points - one more than the Château Lafite Rothschild which sold in the same auction - noting in The Wine Advocate:

"Deep garnet-black colour. An incredible array of aromas on the nose: blackberry, black cherry, tobacco, espresso, leather, black olive and loam.

"The palate is absolutely seamless from first impression to finish, effortlessly building layers of complexity in the mouth and leading to a very long, earth and spice finish. I can't see how this could possibly be improved so have no alternative but concede perfection."

A 12 bottle case was on offer from Edward Roberts International with an estimate of $5,600-7,600. The excited audience more than matched this, and it was finally taken home by a happy bidder for $9,400 - a good investment for years to come, or just 12 extraordinary nights in.

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