Barossa Valley Vintage Festival Auction Report

How It Looked From The Rostrum

The scene was well and truly set: the setting was Penfold’s massive Nuriootpa barrel hall, the lots were on display in all their magnificence and the public were queuing up, keen for breakfast but ever eager for the start of the Barossa’s Vintage Festival much anticipated wine auction. With well over 450 guests attending, the anticipation was quite extraordinary: could 2005 out do the extraordinary results of 2003?

Barossa Valley auction veteran, Colin Gaetjens opened proceedings with an offering of the highly rated Jimmy Watson trophy winner, a bottle of Penfold’s Bin 95 Grange 1965. After much spirited bidding, the hammer fell for $1,100. The auction was at long last off to a good start. Next up was a special mixed dozen of flagship 1998 Barossan reds in memory of the late Oddbins director and auctioneer, Mr Stephen Lumb. This charity lot attracted considerable attention with each bottle of this prized dozen fetching a hammer price of $220. A fitting tribute to this well known wine industry character as all proceeds were donated to childhood cancer.

Next to come under the hammer were 15 lots of crisp dry rieslings, pinot gris and semillons from producers such as Henschke, Yalumba, Peter Lehmann and newer producers like Tin Shed and Whistler wines. The standout lots were the full set of Penfold’s Yattarna chardonnays which fell for $100 bottle and the perennial trophy winner, a dozen bottles of Lehmann’s 1993 Eden Valley Reserve riesling, which after much vigorous bidding finally fell to a hammer price of $140 a bottle.

The achieved prices for the whites relieved many in the audience, as prices paid were either matching or exceeding anticipated estimates. The auction was definitely off to a good start and with the end of the first batch of whites on offer; Gaetjens was able to introduce the Festival’s latest auctioneer, Oddbins Graham Wright, to the rostrum for his first taste of Barossa auction fever.

Next up was a selection of classic reds in bottle. The festivals very own seriously Great Shiraz realised $45 a bottle while two lots of Cimicky 95 shiraz fetched a hammer price of $70/bottle. The auction was now had growing intensity, 96 Elderton Command going for $110/btl, Glaetzer’s intriguing 2003 Amon-Ra fetching $180/btl, early Burge Shadrach fetching $110/btl, and Irvine’s Grand Merlot 1995 achieving $130/btl. But this sections headline act was surely the multiple offering of Henschke’s latest 1999 Hill of Grace with each lot going under the hammer for a very healthy $460/btl.

After a short breather, the auctioneers introduced a number of high profile Penfold’s lots that many collectors were keeping a well-informed eye on. First up a 1980 Bin 80A, $380/btl, then two lots of the extraordinary and highly prized Wynn’s Michel Shiraz 1955. The determined and at times frenzied bidding resulted in a final hammer price of $3,100 per bottle and this flurry of bidding activity flowed onto the next 6 lots with a 1962 Bin 60A, considered by many to be Australia’s greatest wine fetching a considerable $3,100, 1967 Bin 7’s achieving $950/btl and a bottle of 1982 Bin 820 fetching $260.

But it wasn’t an all Penfold’s show as Lehmann’s Stodart trophy winning 1989 trio fell to a hammer price of $160/btl while both Schild Estate’s flagship 2001 Moorooroo Shiraz and Thorn-Clarke’s 2002 William Randell fetched an auction high of $85/btl.

As with most Barossa Valley Festival auctions, it’s not necessarily just wine that is up for sale. As there was a number lots that could be described as lifestyle lots which included a “Taste Of Grange” which includes a tour hosted by Grange maestro Peter Gago of the red wine making operations at Penfold’s Nuriootpa, which achieved a final price of $850, another was Lehmann’s famed “Eight Songs Dinner for 12”, fetching a very respectable $3,000 and a long lunch with industry icon, Bob McLean at barr-Vinum realising $950.

Now came the “Rare Collections”, with offerings of verticals, collections and iconic wines from the likes of Lehmann, Yalumba, Penfolds, Rockford’s and Grant Burge. The standout lots included early vintaged Meshach from Grant Burge ($150/btl), a Jimmy Watson lot featuring JWT winners from Blass, Lehmann and Elderton (realising $150/btl), a 1990 collection from Penfold’s that included Grange, Bin 920, 90A and 707 (hammer price of $500/btl), the ultimate Grange oak-cased pack with vintages from 1990 through 1999 (fetching $750/btl) and a Rockford Basket Press Shiraz dozen reaching $200/btl. And mention must be made of a first offering of four wines commemorating the founding Barons of the Barossa, which realised a very respectable $120/btl.

By this time, breakfast was finished, the sparkling shiraz was flowing and Gaetjens was moving the auction along at rapid pace. At this stage the catalogue now presented the audience with a small selection of fortified wine. Out of this small offering came one the auction highlights, the sale of a single bottle of Seppelt’s 100yo Para 1905 for a hammer price of $1,200. Other notable sales included a Liebichwein Rare Port achieving $80/btl and another Seppelt lot of 1962 Muscat and 1964 Tokay fetching $480/btl.

Now we finally arrived at the auctions dénouement: the large format offerings, which covered magnums, double magnums and imperials. On average, the 42 magnum lots on offer achieved a hammer price of $315/mag, with the standout being the 1994 Hill of Grace ($850/mag), 1996 Block 42 ($1100), a 1998 Octavius magnum ($600/mag) and a collection of Penfold’s RWT’s from 1997 through 2002 fetching $420/mag. Mention should also be made of the small and emerging winery Tin Shed, whose three magnums of ‘02 Single Wire Shiraz fell to a very respectable hammer price of $160/mag.

While most of the proceeds from this auction go back to the Vintage Festival Committee and hence back into the local Barossan community, the famed generosity of the Barossa also spreads to other notable charities as well. We have already noted above the Stephen Lumb memorial lot going to childhood cancer and mention should also be made of Lot 139, Barossa Make-A-Wish Foundation Jarrah Wine Cabinet and Wine Collection, which was a superb stand alone cabinet of 30 fine and rare wines plus glassware. This lot achieved a very considerable hammer price of $3,200.

After the magnums come the “big ones”: imperials of Melton’s Nine Popes 2002 fetching $900/imp, Orlando St Hugo 1998 double magnum achieving $550/dm, Seppelt Great Western shiraz 1985 imperial reaching $1300/imp and one of the day’s true highlights, the sale of a single imperial of Bin 90A for a hammer price of $5,500. Breathtaking stuff and a big round of applause was awarded the buyers at the end. And to keep the excitement rolling along, we had the sale of a Penfolds Bin 920 realising $3000/imperial and a Rockford basket Press 1998 imperial going for $3.800.

And finally, lots 166 the single imperial of Henschke Hill of Grace 199 and lot 167 the Penfolds Grange collection featuring one dozen of the best bottles of Grange starting with the famed 1971 vintage. the headline acts for the day. Lot 166 fell for a masterly $5,500 while lot 167 achieved a hammer price of $1,000 per bottle. Both were subjected to spirited bidding.

And then it was over, the new auctioneer was greatly relieved and suffering from chronic lack of caffeine while the veteran ran out the door, glass of fizz in hand looking for lunch. The 2005 auction was once again a great success.

Auctioneers Perspective

Our expectation was for an auction that would do well but one that would not exceed the obvious excess of 2003. The current climate in the secondary market is one of oversupply and bargain hunting amongst buyers. So it was with some trepidation when we approached Penfold’s Barrel Hall at Nuriootpa to set and start the auction.

Happily, the Barossa once again moved against the national tide and proved us wrong as bidding was both spirited and at times frenzied as groups of tables fought it out for not only the big star attractions but happily, for the offerings from the smaller and newly emerging Barossa producers.

So to the highlights...