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The 162nd Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction realises €31 million

21/11/2022

BEAUNE, MONDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2022 – In a packed saleroom at the Halles de Beaune, with an audience of 700 attendees, yesterday’s sale of the 162nd edition of the Hospices de Beaune wine auction brought €31 million ( million), establishing a record total for any wine auction held by Sotheby’s, and the highest ever total for a charity wine auction - more than double the previous record high for a Hospices de Beaune wine sale.*

In addition, the Pièce des Présidents (Presidents’ Barrel) sold for a record €810,000. The seven-hour sale was conducted by four auctioneers in rotation, with collectors competing enthusiastically from 30 countries, in the room, on the telephones via Sotheby’s team of specialists, and online.

François Poher, Director and Chairman of the Board of Hospices Civils de Beaune, said: “The historic and spectacular results of this sale are a tribute to many people: our winemakers and entire team at the Domaine des Hospices de Beaune, our hospital workers who selflessly carry on with their mission, our founders and donors, and all the Burgundians who support their land, their traditions, but above all, their values of hospitality and fraternity. The new record achieved for the Pièce des Présidents to benefit children’s causes is the best expression of this.”

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Every year since 1945, the Hospices de Beaune has donated a unique “pièce” to support one or more charity organisations. Ludivine Griveau, Manager of the Hospices de Beaune wine estate, produced a one-off Corton Grand Cru for this year’s Pièce des Présidents from a blend of three of the Domaine des Hospices de Beaune’s most beautiful terroirs: Corton Renardes, Corton Bressandes and Corton Chaumes. In an exceptional show of solidarity, a number of individual wine négociants - Badet Clément, Albert Bichot, Groupe Boisset, Bouchard Père et Fils, Champy, Chanson, Joseph Drouhin, Faiveley, Louis Jadot, Olivier Leflaive, Patriarche and Veuve Ambal - jointly acquired the Corton Grand Cru.
French journalist and writer, Flavie Flament, and French actor Benoît Magimel, both took to the rostrum and the aisles in the saleroom to rally even more excitement for the highly anticipated lot. Over the course of a memorable 20-minute bidding battle, the audience erupted into applause several times as the figure rose ever higher. The charity barrel was sold to benefit two organisations – the Princesse Margot association, which supports children with cancer, and the World Vision organisation, whose mission is to help vulnerable children.
The charity pièce paid tribute to the late Louis-Fabrice Latour, the head of Bourgogne négociant Maison Louis Latour, and a leading figure in Bourgogne and loyal supporter of the annual auction, who sadly passed away in September. The wine will continue to mature in a special 228-litre barrel made by the Maison Latour cooperage, in collaboration with the Hospices de Beaune.

The funds raised from this year’s Hospices de Beaune sale will continue to support the upkeep of the Hospices de Civil de Beaune’s hospitals, in keeping with its founding values.