On Friday 9th April 1999 eager bidders and observers gathered for the 26th Barossa Valley Vintage Festival Wine Auction.
These auctions have been held as part of the Vintage Festival since 1961, and are now an outstanding source of supply of many of the World famous and very rare Barossa wines from local winemakers, large and small.
The last few Festival auctions have been notable for their choice of classic wines, and this one was no different.
After what was considered to be an outstanding result at the 25th Anniversary auction in 1997, the 1999 sale eclipsed all records to raise the highest amount ever at a Vintage Festival Wine Auction.
A combination of keen demand, spirited bidding and competition, and an outstanding range of wines, and non-wine, lots offered contributed to the success.
The sale got underway with white wines and rieslings made a wonderful showing, with the highest price ever paid for an Australian riesling being realised at Lot 14 with a Leo Buring Reserve Bin Watervale Bin DWG41, 1977 for $300. Peter Barry and a dedicated private collector battled it out, and followed by bidding spiritedly on lot 15, which was a Leo Buring Reserve Bin Watervale Spatlese Bin DW18 1975, at $150.
Other rieslings, such as Orlando Steingarten 1989 and 1992 realised $60 per bottle, and the excellent Peter Lehmann Eden Valley Reserve riesling 1993 brought $80 per bottle.
A wonderful selection of Penfolds experimental white wines , including the 1995 Yattarna made $85 per bottle and a Henschke Littlehampton Vineyard pinot gris 1997 made $30 per bottle.
The whites were extremely well supported for the 34 lots in the catalogue, and shows that not all collectors have a bias towards red.
Showing the interest in local Olive Oil, a magnum of Jane Ferrari Angaston Olive Oil realised $160, the lot including two trays of handmade Lasagna by Jane Ferrari.
The red selection was wonderful, and produced some excellent prices, although there were still some keenly priced lots for the discerning.
James Irvine, who has had outstanding overseas success with his Grand Merlot, saw $110 being paid for bottles of his 1989 vintage. Penfolds, not only as sponsors of the auction but also as the Barossa’s largest wine company, provided an outstanding range of lots, with the highest price being $880 per bottle for the superb 1962 Bin 60A, $1,050 paid for a set containing a bottle each of 1990 Bin 920, Bin 90A, Bin 707 and Grange, whilst Orlando was very pleased with its newly released Centenary Hill shiraz 1994 which fetched $65 per bottle.
A set of six Riedel shiraz glasses with "Grange" inscription, personally donated by John Duval, realised $400 for the set of six and two bottles only of a first release shiraz from Elmor Roehr, produced from eighty year old shiraz vines dry grown at Ebenezer, realised $80 per bottle for the 1996 vintage.
A fabulous offering by St Hallett, comprising bottles, dozens and magnums of their Faith, Blackwell and Old Block shiraz wines realised an impressive $10,000 for the set, from Gerry Viergiever of Barossa Printers, AQ Printworks.
Moving into magnums, double manganese, imperials and 9 litre bottles, there were some impressive prices paid, with the imperial of Penfolds Grange 1993 at $13,000 eclipsing the imperial of Henschke Hill of Grace 1994 at $5,000.
Prices for imperials ranged anywhere from $500 and upwards and provided opportunities for collectors to purchase unique large format offerings which will never be available on the retail market.
The sale concluded with an impressive offering of rare fortified wines, and a total of over $100,000 was raised for the auction.
Oddbins donates its services to run this sale, with auctioneer Colin Gaetjens having conducted the auctions since 1987.