UK Government To Auction Off Wine Collection In Austerity Drive
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The U.K. government is hoping to raise as much as $98,000 by selling off part of its vintage wine collection, which is normally served to foreign heads of state and prime ministers at 200 or more events a year, reported Reuters.
The U.K. government is hoping to raise as much as $98,000 by selling off part of its vintage wine collection, which is normally served to foreign heads of state and prime ministers at 200 or more events a year, reported Reuters.
Six lots of Bordeaux (54 bottles), ranging in vintage from 1961 to 1988, will be auctioned from the Government Hospitality Cellar at Christie’s International in London on March 21, with the most expensive bottles valued between £6,000 and £8,000($9,000-$12,000).
[quote]“These vintages are too valuable to drink,” said Susan Crown, a Foreign Office spokeswoman, in an interview with Bloomberg. “It was never the intention to buy expensive wine. Their sale will help pay for the running of the cellar and the purchase of less expensive ones.”[/quote]The U.K. government’s wine cellar, located in the basement of Lancaster House near Buckingham Palace, contains 38,090 bottles of wine and spirits with a total estimated market value of $4.47 million.
However, despite efforts to make the cellar self-funding, taxpayers forked out £5,000 last year to maintain the collection – after selling £44,000 worth of wine last year, but buying in bottles worth £49,000 in total.
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A spokeswoman for the Christie’s auction house said that this was “the first time that wine from the Government Hospitality Cellar has gone to auction” with previous sales conducted privately.
[quote]”Many of the wines included in this sale have been served across the decades to kings and queens, presidents and prime ministers,” the Christie’s spokeswoman added.[/quote]According to Reuters, the sale also comes at a time when affluent drinkers in are spending more on expensive wines with growing demand for better quality vintages. In 2011, China was the largest importer of Bordeaux wines in the world, with consumption soaring by 110 percent.
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British Foreign Office Minister Mark Simmonds welcomed the sale and said, “this is part of the process for making the cellar self-funding for the lifetime of the current parliament.”
Formal valuations of the U.K. government’s wine cellar must be regularly submitted to parliament. Crown admitted that while the government was hoping to cut down on its expenses, high-quality French wines will continue to be poured at Lancaster House functions.
[quote]“When President Obama comes to dinner, you can’t serve him Lambrini,” she said.[/quote]
