Six Bottles of 20+ year old French and Italian wines

Embodying the very best of Old-World winemaking, these 6 wines from the personal collection of Christian Bateson all benefit from 20 years of bottle aging in temperature- and humidity-controlled storage.

Chateauneuf-du-Pape (3 bottles)

Both the 2004 and 2005 vintages from Chateauneuf de Pape were excellent, with the 2005 vintage garnering a 97-point rating from Wine Spectator.

“Beware "vintage of the century" hype—even the bit I am about to give you.  I tend to be a conservative prognosticator, but the 2004s show extraordinary potential.”
-Wine Spectator

“Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines in 2005 are very dark, with deep colours; beautiful concentrations have been obtained.  The wines are complex, generous, with crystallized fruits, prune, liquorice and torrefaction scents for the aromatic point of view. The mouth balance is characterised by fullness, structure, and well-coated tannins.”
-en.chateauneuf.com

Barolo & Brunello (3 bottles) 

Pay particular attention to the 2001 Barolo by Azelia, as this is one of the best vintages for Piedmont in modern memory.  The 2004 Brunello vintage matched it in quality.

“2001 Barolo is a great vintage – period, no qualifications. If you have some in your cellar, congratulations; if you don’t, find it where you can.”
-Tom Maresca

“One of the key attributes of 2004 Barolo is that both quality and yields are high, two characteristics that don’t always go hand in hand.  All things considered, the 2004s have aged spectacularly well.”
-Antonio Galloni

“2004 saw wonderfully perfumed, majestically refined Brunellos with an excellent balance of fruit and refined tannins. Reducing yields was key to quality.”
-Wine Spectator

DONATED BY: THE BATESON FAMILY

FAIR MARKET VALUE: $970