The Taste Auction: When Wine Becomes Heritage and Story

From interwar Bordeaux to anniversary Japanese whiskey, Artmark brings time-spanning drinks to the fore.

There are times when wine ceases to be just an expression of the terroir and becomes a witness to history. The Collectible Drinks Auction organized by A10 by Artmark, around the Easter holidays, proposes exactly this type of meeting: with rare bottles, with stories that exceed a century and with the idea that refinement can sometimes be collected.

A century in a bottle

Among the batches that immediately attract attention is a bottle of Château Mouton-d’Armailhacq, Pauillac 1924 — more than a wine, a document of an era.

Coming from the famous Pauillac area, synonymous with the excellence of Bordeaux, this wine belongs to a period when production was deeply linked to tradition, and technology did not yet intervene decisively. The fact that such a bottle has crossed almost a century makes it a rare piece, loaded with memory.

The start-up price — surprisingly affordable — adds an extra layer of interest for collectors.

A symbol of recent history: Moutai

In a completely different, but equally fascinating register, is the Kweichow Moutai Kuíhuā Sunflower from the 1970s.

This iconic distillate is not only a rarity, but also a piece of cultural context. Associated with official protocol and China’s great state banquets, Moutai has become, over time, a symbol of an era and identity.

Its value on the international market confirms this status, and its presence in the auction, at a competitive starting price, makes it a major point of attraction.

Burgundy and Bordeaux: benchmarks of excellence

The Artmark selection brings together names that define the idea of great wine: Chambertin, Clos de Vougeot, Échezeaux or Richebourg — appellations that need no introduction.

In the same line of excellence are the Petrus and Pomerol lots, wines that go beyond the status of label and become true myths. Served even at British royal tables, Petrus remains one of the most desired wines in the world, an almost mandatory presence in elite collections.

A liquid archive: Japanese whiskey

Beyond Europe, the auction also proposes an incursion into Japanese refinement, through Nikka Nine Decades Whisky.

Created to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the house by Masataka Taketsuru, this blend brings together distillates from nine different decades. It is, in essence, a liquid archive — a composition that tells the story of a man and a tradition built between Scotland and Japan.

Collection as a form of culture

This auction is not just about the purchase. It’s about access to a form of heritage — one that is kept in the bottle, but expresses itself over time.

The growing interest in such pieces reflects a subtle change: wine and rare drinks are no longer just consumed, but understood, preserved, passed on.

Artmark manages, through this selection, to create a space where investment and emotion coexist. Where each bottle has a market value, but also a symbolic value.

Because, in the end, these wines and distillates are not just about the past. They’re about how we choose to keep it alive.