Hidden Wine, Hidden Greatness

We’d extracted it from a cellar that had been largely forgotten about for the best part of two decades, deep in the chalk of southern England where it had lain undisturbed since the late 1960’s. The label had long since disintegrated with only the remains of a back label and a capsule to give us an idea of what this bottle might contain.

At Christie’s, we are in the business of bringing icons of the wine world to the market, but in this instance, we could confirm neither the exact cru nor the vintage, giving us the perfect opportunity to share with a client a bottle highlighting the extraordinary conditions that this cellar had kept its wines in.

It was an unremarkable mid-week lunchtime as we walked through the busy streets of East London, keeping this bottle as undisturbed as possible as we weaved our way toward our destination. We sat down and our thoughts immediately turned to the opening of this bottle we had so carefully transported. 

Nothing can quiet the senses and bring total stillness and calm like a perfect bottle of red Burgundy.

As we pulled the cork, the faded text printed onto it came into focus and we saw that what we were about to experience was a bottle of 1966 Echézeaux from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti.

The restaurant was crowded, loud, a little hectic, but nothing can quiet the senses and bring total stillness and calm like a perfect bottle of red Burgundy.

Delicate, elegant and yet unwaveringly authoritative, at almost 60 years old it showed its age in the best possible way. Fresh florality mingled perfectly with an almost earthy richness, all the elements of this wine having spent their lifetime evolving together perfectly. 

The whole notion of enjoying a bottle of wine changed for me after that experience, wine didn't seem worth drinking unless it could provide even a modicum of that elusive pleasure...

It seems redundant to eulogise on the greatness of the wines of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, many have done so far more articulately thant I would dare to, but what this bottle taught me is that greatness often creeps up on you after the fact. That isn’t to say that I didn’t enjoy the experience of drinking it, it was one of the great pleasures of my life. However what caught me off guard was the grip it continues to hold on me, years later.

The whole notion of enjoying a bottle of wine changed for me after that experience, wine didn’t seem worth drinking unless it could provide even a modicum of that elusive pleasure I experienced on that occasion.

I think about this wine frequently, it has changed me, it has changed the way I drink and it has changed the way I think. And perhaps therein lies its true greatness.