World-renowned wine critic and writer Hugh Johnson has auctioned the contents of his cellar in the UK, with a single bottle of Chateau Petrus' 2000 vintage providing the most valuable lot.
 Johnson enjoying a few glasses of the world's finest wines in 2003 |
The bottle sold for £6,600 ($10,124), with the 2000 vintage considered one of the finest to come from Chateau Petrus in recent years. It is said to compare well with the illustrious 1990 vintage, and holds a perfect 100-point score from wine critic Robert Parker.
The sale realised £88,000 ($134,995) in total.
Hugh Johnson is the world's best-selling wine writer, having published the pocket guide The World Atlas of Wine in 1971. He currently contributes to the leading publication Decanter magazine, who explained that Johnson was selling his wines due to a move to a smaller house.
Johnson has resided at his family estate, Saling Hall in Essex, for more than 40 years, but has decided to move closer to London.
The second highest bids of the sale were seen by a 12-bottle case of Chateau Haut-Brion's 1990 offering, which brought £3,900 ($5,982), nearing its top estimate of £4,000.
The auction comes amid promising news for the fine wine market, with specialist investment firm Premier Cru recently announcing that it expects values to increase by 10% by December 2013. CEO Stacey Golding has also tipped Chateau Pontet Canet as a wine to watch this year.
Following a poor year in 2012, the market has regained some of its former strength, with the Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 showing a 3.1% increase in value in February alone.
