Good afternoon. It's mid-December and there are two major auctions in New York this week and one (interestingly) between Xmas and NYE.
December is always a busy time in the wine auction world. There's traditionally a gap between the mid-December auctions and the late winter (March) auctions so if you're looking to sell and get paid any time soon, you've got to sell in December.
For the savvy buyer, that can be good or bad.
On the one hand, it means there's a lot of wine on the block. All the major auction houses have large, 1,000+ lot live auctions, plus the online auctions. Though it's a well-trod cliché at this point, there truly is "something for everyone" regardless of taste or price point in December. And, with this many lots on the block, there are bound to be a few that fall under the radar which means there are deals to be had.
On the other hand, just as consignors want to sell, bidders want to buy, which means there's often a renewed sense of urgency going into the winter lull. May as well stock up now, the thinking goes.
So let’s get into it.
🗓️ Upcoming Auctions
From tomorrow through the 19th, starting each day at 9am ET, this is truly an unwieldy beast--including mixed lots, the Excel for the sale stretches to nearly 5,000 lines. Roughly 1,100 lots a day.
But that's why I'm here.
As I've said here before, I'm a sucker for mature Tempier, and this auction has 1989 (mag), 1991, 1993 and 1994 (lot 1866) for $1400. That's 10 bottles and 2 magnums.
This auction has a huge amount of very high-end Burgundy too (Mugnier, Rousseau, Roumier, DRC etc). I'd take a peek at lot 219, a 3L of 2015 Clos de la Marechale (red) from Mugnier. At $550, that's a great jeroboam to have for a special occasion.
I also love lot 656, a full case of 2019 Nuits-St-Georges, Roncieres, from Robert Chevillon for $600. And I said it last time, but I do love these Leroux wines--a "maison" in name, meaning he doesn't own his vines, but in practice this is as good as Domaine fruit as he has worked his plots directly for ages. Lot 2468 is a lovely mix lot. If you don't enjoy them, let me know and I'll stop suggesting them every month. Lot 2452 with wines from PYCM, Lafarge, Voillot, Lafon and Rouget is an excellent mixed lot just for some holiday time sipping. Ditto lot 1977 with Chezeaux, Drouhin, Roumier, Mongeard Mugneret.
Lastly, late in the auction there are actually some well-priced Bordeaux verticals which would be great to split with some friends for a nice holiday dinner. If you buy 3188-3192 that's a great Leoville-Poyferre vertical, for example, or lot 3209 is a Ducru-Beaucaillou dinner pre-packaged. There's no better way to learn vintages and the soul of a chateau than to pop all these bottles together.
Zachys has a fair-sized single-owner called the "Countdown Collection," on December 29, live streamed from DE. It's a bit odd to have a big auction between Xmas and NYE so there may be some interesting deals here. It's a fantastic selection--my guess is the only reason it's sandwiched in between the holidays as it is is some sort of consignor request or logistics necessity. With the auction on 12/29 and the wines in DE, there's no way you will get it for NYE which may turn people off.
It's got the perfect bite-sized chunk of every wine: the first growths, the non-first classified growths, the major Burgundy, a nod to the Rhone Valley, and then Italian, Spain and California with a touch of Loire Valley (Rougeard) and Champagne thrown in for good measure. To me the most interesting thing here is the mags of wines from Piedmont, like lot 480, 5x Barolo Cerretta Conterno 2010 for $1600, or lot 482, a single mag of Barolo Francia Conterno 2010 for $500. There are also a smattering of large format Gaja wines in this section.
Beyond the beaten path, you should try a 1940s Huet once before you die, and there's a Vouvray Moelleux Le Haut Lieu 1947 (lot 447) in this sale. Most of these bottles are late-release and quite a few were from an auction Christie's London did probably 2 decades ago. They're fascinating wines. I'd throw in a bit on lot 439 too-- a 6-pack of 2008 Cristal for $1400.
If you're going to bid on Burgundy, there's a minuscule selection of Hubert Lignier (lots 307-310) which are well priced and punch above their weight. 2001 Charmes is particularly appealing, especially in magnum (lot 307).
Happy New Year, folks. Thanks for joining me over these past few weeks, and I’ll be back at the top of 2026.
Until then, if you’ve been enjoying All In All Done, please do consider forwarding to your drinking buddies. Consider it a Christmas gift–definitely to me, and hopefully to them too.
Cheers
-The Gavel God
