London — An imperial of 1989 Petrus from the Pomerol region of Bordeaux fetched £28,200 from a UK private bidder at a Sotheby’s wine sale in London last week. The price fetched for the six-litre bottle exceeding the upper estimate of £20,00, according to the auction house. Twelve bottles of Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1982 sold for £22,325. Among Burgundies, six magnums of Chambertin 1980 Armand Rousseau went for £18,800, compared with an upper estimate of £3,000. Six bottles of La Romanee 2002 Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair fetched £16,450. Auction prices included a 17.5% buyer’s premium, which was not included in presale estimates. The auction came as the market for top-end Bordeaux wine has been recovering after a 40% plunge in prices of many first growths. The London-based Liv-ex fine wine 50 index of top Bordeaux rose 27% last year, recouping some of the ground lost over the five previous years of declines. Demand for scarce or historic Burgundy bottles remains solid as does appet...

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