The UK’s oldest wine merchant, which was established in 1698, recently announced that it was expanding into the online wine auction market.
Berry Bros & Rudd has now announced that its inaugural auction will begin on 28 October, featuring the private collection of Ian Mill KC.
The renowned barrister has spent several decades building up a selection of Burgundy wines spanning from 1955 to 2020.
His cellar has a strong focus on red wines from the iconic 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1999 and 2002 vintages, along with white wines from the 1970s to the early 1990s. There are also prestigious wines from the best recent vintages, including 2014 and 2017.
This collection features wines from the top producers in the region, including Armand Rousseau, Georges Roumier, René Engel, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Domaine Dujac, François Raveneau, Coche-Dury, Domaine Leflaive, Comtes Lafon and Arnaud Ente.
Aside from Burgundy, the collection also features vintage Champagne from the likes of Krug, Dom Perignon and Cedric Bouchard, plus sought-after lots from esteemed producers such as Ridge in California and Jamet in Côte-Rotie.
Geordie Willis, director of new ventures for Berry Bros & Rudd, called it ‘a selection of extraordinary wines’ from a ‘renowned collection’.
He added: ‘We have a long-held and close relationship with Ian, and we are honoured and delighted that he has entrusted the sale of this part of his collection to us.’
Mill has built up strong personal relationships with producers in Burgundy, but he has also been a client of BB&R for the past 20 years.
He has selected a wide range of bottles to be offered for sale, and they have all been carefully inspected by Philip Moulin, BB&R’s fine wine quality and authentication manager.
Mill said: ‘I am delighted to have been asked to offer a selection of bottles from my collection to support the launch of BB&R’s venture into the wine auction market. This commercial expansion is obviously a smart move on their part, and I am thrilled to work with their expert team.’
Bidding will get underway on 28 October, and the online auction will close on 6 November.