A simple email arrived saying “I have found some wine in my new house." I naively thought that there are no unknown wine collections… until this moment.

Dreweatts are now in a privileged position to offer this small but important discovery. These bottles have laid undisturbed for decades, until the house was recently purchased by the current owner and a trap door cellar was discovered in an outbuilding, revealing this wonderful sleeping collection.

We believe that the majority of the wines were purchased in the early part of the previous owner’s life. Some were purchased from the Civil Service Stores - the 1943 & 1945 Latour are examples. This is extraordinary provenance.

These are important and historical wines. They may not look perfect, but after tasting them, we are excited and believe that these may be the few last bottles in the world that are ready to be enjoyed as they exactly should be. Even the Chateaux themselves may be envious!

As we pulled the wines from the cellar, every bottle and its condition drew another gasp of excitement… "another 45 Latour… and another 49 Mouton… oh, and a 29 Haut Brion".

Many of the levels and colour give the impression that they were bottled yesterday. A true time capsule from the south coast of Hampshire.

From 1929-1964, they are high on the shoulder or in the neck, deep in colour, with secure corks and no seepage - just bottles that were forgotten about for decades in a cold, deep, damp and dark cellar. The labels and capsules are not perfect but that is what a bit of sea air does. It is what is on the inside that counts, and after tasting them, this was indeed the case.

Dreweatts cannot guarantee all these bottles, but of the three we tried, every wine demonstrated that they were something special.

1959 Chateau Leoville Barton

"For the 1959 Chateau Leoville Barton, most of the cork came out easily…damp and saturated, a little bit of the bottom had to be pushed through, but this is not a problem. It was soon filtered into a decanter. It showed a stunning bright, shimmering dark red colour, showing just how old it is! Young fruit, ripe bananas, burnt rubber... there is so much going on here! A young Barolo? Not my thing to start with, but I knew it was good.

"An hour later... the strange nose now discarded, this has become a truly great claret. Just showing how well it was stored.

"Very special and all one can think is that having remained untouched for so long, this is how it is meant to be. Tasted 24 hours later it was just as fresh and incredible, and perhaps even better. Everything perfectly integrated - the producer Ronald Barton would have been very proud!"

1964 Chateau Batailley

"The cork was long and saturated, and pulled easily, straight from the bottle. I adore this year, it is my style. It’s not a big, concentrated, complex profound style that gets people excited and wax lyrical.

"It is just the most perfect glass of balanced, silky mature Claret.
This bottle didn’t just take me by surprise, like the 64 Poyferre I had a couple of years ago - I will never forget it. Similar to the 1959 Barton, it was even better 24 hours later. Absolutely magical, it is a testament to the conditions it had been stored in."

1959 Chateau Haut Bages

"Like the Leoville Barton, most of the cork came out in one go, leaving a little at the bottom of the bottle. Easily filtered and decanted - a wine that taught me that I know nothing about old wine. On paper I would have dismissed this wine. On tasting however, I would have bitten your arm off for another glass.

"A classic Bordeaux that grew in depth and flavour over 24 hours, resulting in a complex moreish wine, with tobacco and dark fruit, a cashmere rich wine. Every part beautifully integrated. Once again, reiterating the great provenance of the cellar that we are offering."

Auction Details

This is a live online auction with an auctioneer. The auction will take place on Tuesday 24 February (starting at 10.30am GMT) at Dreweatts Newbury, but please note all wine and spirits are stored off-site at LCB Eton Park. Bidding is available online, by telephone, by commission bids or in person at Dreweatts. Please contact Dreweatts to register all commission bids or telephone bids by 12 noon GMT the day before the sale.

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THINKING OF SELLING? 
Our specialists can provide valuations on single bottles and entire cellars, as well as advice on starting and maintaining your cellar. For further details or a free auction valuation, please contact: 

Dreweatts Wine Department
Mark Robertson | Violette Jongbloed | Emily Clarke | Lucy Dadd
Direct tel: +44 (0) 1635 553 594
Main tel: +44 (0) 1635 553 553
E-mail: wine@dreweatts.com

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