Hospices de Beaune sale celebrates record participation as it achieves €18.8m
Burgundy’s historic Hospices de Beaune’s sales raised €18.8m (US$21.5m) on Sunday night, the third highest total in the sale’s 165-year history, as the average price of a barrel continued to rise.
The 165th Hospices de Beaune sale saw the overall hammer price come to €18,754,670, including €400,000 raised by the Pièce des Présidents (Presidents’ Barrel), which is sold exclusive of buyer’s premium fees.
The totals proved a large increase on last year’s €14 million euros (US$14.7 million), a vintage marked by hugely reduced yields due to difficult climatic conditions, although it was one that saw a record increase in the average hammer price per barrel of red and white wines. There was also 4.6% increase in the average hammer price to €33,93 – the fifth consecutive year the average price per barrel has exceeded €30,000.
This broke down to an average price per barrel of €27,480 for the reds; €58,580 for the whites; €86,290 for the Grands Crus and €23,180 for the Premiers Crus.
Overall the 2025 edition comprised 552 lots: 428 barrels of 34 red wines, 111 barrels (including two half-barrels) of 18 white wines, 11 barrels of eaux-de-vie, in addition to the Presidents’ Barrel.
The 2025 auction falls below the two top record-breaking years of 2022, which saw totals of €28.9m, or the €23.3m raised in 2023 (for 753 barrels).
The highlight of the sale was the Pièce des Présidents, a barrel of Pommard Premier Cru Les Rugiens, the proceeds of which was shared between two charities: the EHCO association, a non-profit organisation dedicated to helping handicapped children in the Côte-d’Or region, which was represented by film director Cédric Klapisch and French actor Vincent Lacoste; and the Robert-Debré Children’s Brain Institute, a pioneering research and care facility located in Paris, dedicated to understanding and supporting children’s cognitive development, represented by French actress Alice Taglioni and DJ, singer, songwriter, and record producer, Martin Solveig.
The record price for the a ‘Presidents’ Barrel was set in 2022 with a barrel of Corton Grand Cru which raised €810,000.
Guillaume Koch, director and chairman of the Board of the Hospices Civils de Beaune, noted that the white wines in particular “held some wonderful surprises, including a new record for the most valuable barrel ever sold (excluding the Pièce des Présidents) with the Bâtard-Montrachet [Grand Cru, Cuvée Dames de Flandres]” which saw both barrels in the sale achieve €400,000.
Partner Content
Other cuvées that achieved auction records were Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru, Cuvée François de Salins (€155,000); and Beaune Blanc Premier Cru Clos des Mouches, Cuvée Hugues et Louis Bétault (€60,000). In addition, the auction’s 52nd cuvée, Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru, Cuvée François Faiveley – which was offered following a donation by Domaine Faiveley in its 200th anniversary year – saw two barrels of wine from within the Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru appellation sell for €165,000 and €170,000.
Marie-Anne Ginoux, managing director of Sotheby’s France, noted the “remarkable” enthusiasm surrounding this 2025 edition, pointing to “record levels of participation and collectors travelling from around the world to take part in this historic event”. This followed 24 events to showcase the wines in 17 locations including Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, Copenhagen, Jakarta,
Madrid and São Paulo, for the first time.
She said the sale was “a testament to the shared generosity of everyone involved – from the négociants and the local community to our international buyers – whose support makes this event truly exceptional.”
Célian Ravel d’Estienne, head of wine auction sales, Sotheby’s France, added that the “enthusiasm and appreciation from the international wine community attests not only to the quality of the
wines but also the enduring appeal of Burgundy’s finest”, calling it an “outstanding” sale.
Related news
The Castel Group rocked by Succession-style family rift
