The sale

Sunday, June 23rd 2024 |  10 am & 2pm  |  Saint-Julien

Bruno-Eugène Borie, owner-resident of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, comments on the auction:

"This auction marks both the tercentenary of Ducru-Beaucaillou and my first 20 years at the helm of the estate. More than 20 years guided by a drive for continuous quality improvement (the Japanese Kaizen), with the exclusive aim of turning our dreams of excellence into reality in our wines. The time has come to share them with the very select circle of the world's greatest connoisseurs and collectors that you represent…”

Over and above the very wide range of wines on offer, and in particular the very rare icons it contains, this Baghera/wines auction is a first in many respects: for starters, it is the first dedicated Ducru-Beaucaillou auction in the company's 300-year history; secondly, it is the first auction to be held directly at an estate; in just a few years, the auction house Baghera/wines has become a key player in the ultra-sought-after world of major auction houses, notably racking up number of records in the realm of large-format wines, notably from Burgundy.

It is therefore with great pleasure and pride that the Ducru-Beaucaillou and Baghera/wines’ teams have worked together to produce this exceptional event on 23 June 2024, which will familiarize you with Ducru-Beaucaillou, enable us to get to know you better in order to serve you better, and finally leave an indelible mark on our history!"

The first auction to be held directly at an estate…

Bruno-Eugène Borie

a terroir, a calling…

A child of the Médoc, Bruno-Eugène Borie grew up in the heart of the peninsula.

Bruno-Eugène spent hours in the humid cold of the Médoc winter observing the winegrowers pruning the venerable vines, raking them to the vime behind them, or in the cellars, the wine merchants turning the dodges into rubble. Thus patiently, the beauty of the perfectly executed, thoughtful, fair, elegant gesture was imprinted on him. Economical too. He learned, beyond its harshness, the great nobility of manual work.

Inspired by the landscapes that surrounded him, the perfect gestures of the work in the vineyard and the cellars, the tales and legends of the ancients, Bruno-Eugène Borie developed a particular sensitivity and a strong attachment to the lands of Beaucaillou. Infused within him was the deep satisfaction that comes from a job well done, the great reward of a well-managed harvest, but also the desolation of a frost or a hailstorm, the infuriating attack of slugs, mildew, rust… or more simply the rotting of a seed in flooded soil. "The earth is much more than earth. It is a living thing which must remain virgin, which suffers, defends itself and takes revenge." (Jean Giono, “Regain.”)

In mid-spring, the house came alive with Primeur tastings. Of course, this had nothing to do with the great celebration they have become today. These gentlemen, the brokers of the Place, went to the Château to evaluate the wines of the last harvest before marketing them to the Bordeaux wine trade. “My childhood was nourished by the story of the Johnstons; and therefore the history of Ducru-Beaucaillou, a property for which they always had a particular attachment.” (Interview with Hugues Lawton).

Sometimes, at these same moments, Bruno-Eugène Borie and his elders had the honor of welcoming importers: English, American, Belgian, Hanseatic or Swiss, and a few rare Parisians.

His father, Jean-Eugène Borie, took him traveling very early on. Bruno-Eugène Borie discovered America at 16 and thanks to his Dad's connections, was able to do a summer internship in Californian vineyards.

A student in Bordeaux, Bruno-Eugène attended the SIGMA festival which introduced him to previously unknown horizons. The avant-garde of the theater of song and dramatic art. Then, in the Lainé warehouses, there was the opening of the CAPC which gave him an opening to contemporary art.

It was an upheaval. His taste, quite classic until then, opened up to modernity. At the same time, Bruno-Eugène Borie abandoned his agronomic aspirations for economy and trade. Its rurality was gradually tinged with urbanity. He developed a passion for metropolises. He traveled to contemporary art museums and galleries. Bruno-Eugène even considered settling in Paris, then New York and also Singapore.

Bordeaux continued to expand its cultural scope. But it was above all by traveling for large-scale exports that he opened up to the world.

Whereas, since August 1981, when he entered the service of Peter Sichel, he had moved away from the lands of his birth, traveling the world to sell his employer's wines, then, from 1985, to build a network of distribution for Lillet which he had just acquired with a group of investors, he gradually felt his passion for Ducru-Beaucaillou rise within him and his wish to one day take on the family business. His father, moreover, encouraged him to do so, first by transmitting to him very early on the participation that was his and then by having him join the Supervisory Board. After his death in 1998, his brother François-Xavier wanted to reorganize the family group, remaining alone in Pauillac at the head of Grand Puy Lacoste and Haut Batailley, leaving their mother Madame Borie, their sister Sabine and Bruno-Eugène himself Ducru -Beaucaillou... and Ducluzeau.

He had reached a certain maturity allowing him to express, in his business project, a holistic approach: a deep attachment to the lands of Beaucaillou, its history and its Médoc culture but also his passion for viticulture, great wines, cuisine, art and design, great music and opera.

Finally, his current project for Ducru-Beaucaillou also meant ensuring the perpetuation of these intense moments, anchoring, in the contemporary world, the sustainability of a Medocan cultural heritage, doing everything possible to find emotion in the wines. which gave rise to the 1959 and 1961 of Ducru-Beaucaillou.

Thus, his vocation took shape little by little, fueled by the love of his native land and the desire to share with the world its beauty and its stories but also to bring there the experiences and the wonders that he had been able to live according to his wishes,  his travels and visits.

He carried within him the spirit of the Médoc, a mixture of simplicity, resilience and a deep connection to the land, he brought here the taste for science, progress and innovation of values ​​that would guide each of his steps towards the realization of his Medocan dreams.

The wines

Vintages from … 1887–2023

3,303 bottles 138 Double-Magnums 700 Magnums

26 Imperials 15 Melchiors 1 Nebuchadnezzar

6 Salmanazars 6 Babyloniums® 2 barrels

Top lots

— Lot 298 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1887
1 Bottle
— € 2’000 – 4’000 —
— Lot 300 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1911
1 Bottle
— € 1'500 – 3’000 —
— Lot 306 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1926
1 magnum
— € 4’000 – 8’000 —
— Lot 314 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1945
1 Bottle
— CHF 1’500 – 3’000 —
— Lot 333 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1959
3 Magnums
— € 15’000 – 30’000 —
— Lot 337 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1961
6 Bottles
— € 14’000 – 28’000 —
— Lot 409 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1982
1 Double-magnum
— € 2’000 – 4’000 —
— Lot 456 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1985
1 Melchior
— € 12’000 – 24’000 —
— Lot 529 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
1989
1 Imperial
— € 1’500 – 3’000 —
— Lot 268 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
2020
6 Magnums
— € 2’000 – 4’000 —
— Lot 289 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
2022
1 Barrel
— € 45’000 – 90’000 —
— Lot 293 —
CHÂTEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU
2018 celebration
21 various formats
— CHF 22’000 – 44’000 —

The events

worldwide promotional tour

The remarkable collection of wines from the historic cellars of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, the first auction ever organized at the property, offering vintages ranging from 1887 to 2023, was an opportunity to bring together all Château Ducru-Beaucaillou lovers around a series of exceptional masterclasses and dinners organized around the world…

let's go further…

Read & watch

The catalogues | An exclusive triptych box set

A collector's triptych

A collector's triptych box set, edited in limited edition, for an exceptional sale. Two original illustrated catalogues for the morning and afternoon sales completed by a historical album, richly illustrated by archives, to plunge into three centuries of an exceptional chateau.

The film | Watch the short film of the “Dear pebbles” sale

“Dear pebbles” on film

Watch Baghera/wines’ film “Dear pebbles” and discover this extraordinary collection of Bordeaux wines. An invitation to the heart of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou.

The film | “Dear pebbles”, the morning session

"Dear pebbles" catalogue volume 1

Vintages from 2003 to 2023

Watch and discover this extraordinary collection of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou wines from the morning session.

The film | “Dear pebbles”, the afternoon session

"Dear pebbles" catalogue volume 2

Vintages from 1887 to 2000

Watch and discover this extraordinary collection of Château Ducru-Beaucaillou wines from the afternoon session.

The magazine | Facts, figures & inside stories

time to B wine #16

The uniqueness of the “Dear pebbles” auction deserved a new edition of our magazine “time to B wine”. Learn more about this extraordinary auction and Baghera/wines' latest news. 

The blog | read the articles dedicated to the sale

blog time…

It is with a feeling of immense privilege that we present to you what is surely one of the most magnificent Bordeaux collections in the world. It celebrates rarity and history in a unified assemblage…

The press

The press | find here the articles dedicated to the “dear pebbles” auction

An “extraordinary” sale

In Gironde, auctions of a prestigious Bordeaux wine brought in 1.8 million euros...

Portfolio

Aromatic landscapes, vintages and History...