With the recent arrest of Rudy Kurniawan for trying to sell counterfeit wine, many were wondering how the arrest would impact Spectrum Wine Auctions, an auction house that almost sold some of Kurniawan’s wine back in February.
We now know the answer: Not much.
This past weekend in Hong Kong, Spectrum held its first auction since the arrest of Kurniawan. Over at WineBerserkers, eagle-eyed oenophiles — led by Burgundy-expert Don Cornwell — noticed a number of questionable wines.
Some were pulled from the auction, without any acknowledgement by Spectrum. (Lot #630, a likely fake of a 1989 DRC Montrachet.) Most others remained and sold. Results — with the questions that were raised — were as follows:
Lot #1298. G. Roumier Chambolle Musigny Les Amoureuses 1999
– Even though this wine is a magnum, the label says it’s a 750ml.
– Don Cornwell caught that the capsule is also missing the Domaine name, “which is printed in black going around the capsule. This one has a plain capsule.”
Sold for $2,748 (Estimate $2,000)
Lot #1526. H. Jayer Echézeaux 1996
– From Don Cornwell on WineBerserkers:
“This is listed as Henri Jayer Echezaux but it is in fact Georges Jayer Echezaux. Henri quit making Echezaux under his own label after the 1994 vintage. The photo is quite fuzzy, but on the lower left it says Georges Jayer Propriétaire in smaller print below Henri Jayer — in the customary fashion. Additionally, the crest or coat of arms for Henri Jayer is quite different. The one on the label is for Georges Jayer.”
Sold for $1,912 (Estimate $1,200)
Lot #1794. Domaine De La Romanée-Conti Richebourg 1985
– This wine has “Percy Fox” — the well-known UK wine distributor — misspelled as “Percx Fox.”
Sold for $3,824 (Estimate $4,000)
Lot #2130. Domaine De La Romanée-Conti La Tâche 1952
– From Don Cornwell on WineBerserkers:
“First, note the ultra pristine new-looking main label. On the other hand, the Lebègue Bichot neck label on Lot 2130 has notable bin soil and and at least some visible oxidation. This makes no sense.”
Sold for $2,988 (Estimate $3,500)
Lot #2167. Domaine De La Romanée-Conti Romanée Conti 1980
– This wine has “Percy Fox” — the well-known UK wine distributor — misspelled as “Percy Foy.”
Sold for $7,170 (Estimate $6,000)
Lot #1251. Rousseau Chambertin Clos De Beze 1993
– From Don Cornwell on WineBerserkers:
“Lot 1251 appears to be counterfeit. Lot 1251 has no capsule at all. It should have the intricate gold and white capsule… or the red capsule with black…
“Lot 1251 is also missing the vintage neck label plus it contains an incorrect Wildman neck label that’s falling off the bottle. The main label has the vintage typed on twice… and Rousseau never did that to my knowledge. The label also has a strange vertical fold from top to bottom which starts about 1/3 of the way across the label from the left. The colors on the Coat of Arms bunting don’t match at all. The pattern details on the Coat of Arms are blurred out from a bad photocopy job.”
Bidding did not reach reserve