“A lot of love and care has gone into this cellar, but the time has come, and we’ve made the decision to work with Webb’s to let these wines go to people who will appreciate the cellaring that’s gone into each bottle and appreciate aged wines,” Bergin said.
The collection achieved the rare feat of a complete sell-through, also called a “white glove auction”. Of the 530 bidders, 201 bought every bottle up for auction; a rare feat. Typically, Webb’s sells 90% of wines up for auction, but this was not your typical auction.
Bergin said the hardest bottle to let go of was not a classic from Bordeaux, Burgundy or the Douro Valley in Portugal, home to vintage port. It was a South African Pinotage that tugged at his heartstrings.
Asked why he was so attached to this wine, Bergin says: “It’s possibly one of the most fantastic wines made in a very underrated country.”
“I visited the winery and had the most wonderful experience. The wine is not exported and almost impossible to get in South Africa, let alone outside the country.”
The providence of the 2006 Meerandal Pinotage from Durbanville is what made it compelling for him.
Webb’s Fine wine and whisky specialist Finn McCabe holds a bottle of Meerendal The Heritage Block 2006 Pinotage. Photo / Supplied
The highest number of bids (21) was for a Spanish Rioja (a long-aged Tempranillo and Garnacha blend, typically). In close second, with 20 bids, was a Marlborough wine, not the standard Sauvignon Blanc but a 2018 Fromm Beerenauslese Riesling, a rarity from an unusual vintage with ideal conditions for an ultra-concentrated expression of Riesling.
Finn McCabe, Webb’s Fine Wines & Whiskies Specialist, said it was fun watching people trying to outbid each other and watching less famous wines receive high bids, especially when big-name classics such as Château Latour and Margaux were also present.
“Instead, people’s interest dives into wines that unlock a rich history that you don’t see very much.”
The 1979 Mildara Cabernet Sauvignon from Coonawarra in Australia and a 2007 Vergelegen Stellenbosch Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon were also in high demand. While the estimate was $30 to $50 a bottle, they sold for $120 each.
Bergin’s collection was never a conventional one, as these and other wines in the auction showed.
John Bergin’s collection of wine. Photo / Supplied
He says one of the most quirky and hard-to-find wines in his collection was the 2009 Casas del Toqui “Leyenda del Toqui”, from the Cachapoal Valley in Chile.
“I carried this wine back from Chile when bottles were allowed on planes. It has a lead crest on a very heavy bottle and was typical of the sort of wine I would seek out when travelling for work.”
The collection also represents an unusual range of wines that doesn’t come across the desk at Webb’s every day, McCabe said.
“We see unusual wines from people who, at various stages of their lives, want or need to sell them. Perhaps they can’t drink any more or they’re moving overseas or they’ve had their collection for yonks and don’t know what to do with it, so auctioning allows other people to unlock the potential of the wines.”
When Bergin began the Auckland Wine Club, he and fellow founders of the club loved drinking aged wines, so they wanted to cellar bottles for the future.
Classic wines from traditional regions of the world were also among the collection. Two 250ml bottles of Hungary’s famous wine, Royal Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos, sold for $320, far more than the expected $30 to $40.
John Bergin’s collection of wine. Photo / Supplied
Southern Hemisphere wines were as sought after as those from the north. There were high bids in New Zealand wines, such as Kumeu River Mate’s Vineyard Chardonnay and Sacred Hill Rifleman’s Chardonnay, which Bergin describes as some of the greatest wines ever made in this country. Another wine he rated highly was Rod McDonald RM Syrah, a rarity made in small volumes.
These wines sold alongside Château Latour, Château Haut-Brion, René Rostaing Côte-Rôtie and Cannubi Boschis Barolo DOCG. There was vintage port, with one bottle dated to the 1950-60s, purely by the branding on the capsule, as the label had come off.
“Wine is a snapshot in time. I don’t know of any other product that captures a place, its history, geography and the culture of the people who made it, all in one bottle. It’s more than just a drink,” McCabe said.
“Someone in the far-flung hills of Italy or the middle of France crafts something and lo and behold, someone in New Zealand buys it years later. That’s pretty outstanding. It’s bottled history.”
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