Geneva-based Baghera Wines is the «young wild one» in the wine auction business with particularly exclusive drops. For a special auction, they are teaming up with Château Ducru-Beaucaillou.

In the year 1887, France was in the early phase of the Third Republic. The Franco-German War had ended several years earlier. And Charles de Gaulle had not been born yet.

Acquiring a wine from this era is not an everyday occurrence. And the possession of a bottle from 1887 is likely to serve more as an enhancement to the wine cellar than for sensory enjoyment.

Starting Bid: 2,000-4,000 Euros

Such a rarity will go under the hammer on June 23 in Saint-Julien in Médoc.

Specifically, Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, owned by the Borie family for three generations, will auction a total of 3,303 bottles in regular format, 138 double magnums, 700 magnums, 26 imperials, fifteen Melchiors, one Nebuchadnezzar, six Salmanazars, six Babyloniums (27 liters), and two wine barrels of 225 liters each.

Premiere for Geneva auction house

The wines have never been moved from the cellars of the Château. The oldest exhibit is the aforementioned 0.75-liter bottle from 1887, advertised with a starting price of 2,000 euros ($2,186) to 4,000 euros. The second oldest object is also a regular-sized bottle from 1911.

The auction is conducted by the Geneva-based company Baghera Wines, for which this is the first event on French soil. The company was founded in 2015 by Michael Ganne, a wine businessman from Medoc, and Julie Carpentier, formerly a wine expert at Christie's.

Interest from Asia

In the international scene, the auction house dedicating itself to special wines, which also has a small boutique in Geneva, has quickly made a name for itself. It repeatedly facilitates the acquisition of special rarities, with a large part of its clientele coming from Asia.

The owner of Ducru-Beaucaillou, Bruno-Eugène Borie, sees the auction as the «crowning of the 300th anniversary» of his Château. He expresses «joy and pride» in working with the Baghera Wines team, which has "become one of the key players in the world of major auction houses within a few years and has achieved numerous records in large formats, especially in Burgundy wines," according to Borie.

Ducru-Beaucaillou's Grand Cru Classé is not among the most exclusive names in Bordeaux but is generally appreciated for its high quality.