Cellar Dwellers by Campbell Jefferys

When people think of Thomas Jefferson, they think of the distinguished diplomat and statesman who was instrumental in the founding of the United States of America. Few recognise him as the wine connoisseur that he was. Yet, the world’s most expensive bottle of wine, a 1787 Château Lafite, bears his initials, Th.J, on the glass. Well, at least it did.

Just before the French Revolution, Jefferson was serving as ambassador for the USA to the Versailles Court. Already renowned for his talents as a businessman, politician, lawyer, architect and diplomat, Jefferson acquired a passion for winemaking while in France and stayed in the Bordeaux region in 1787. He bought wines for his collection and for friends back home. The Château Lafite was among the four leading wines which he studied and ultimately purchased, and he remained a devoted consumer of Bordeaux wines until his death.

The bottle in question with Th.J on the glass, the authenticity of which has been much called into question, was auctioned by Christie’s in 1985, the successful bid being US$160,000 from the Forbes family. It remains the most expensive bottle of wine in the world, no less because of the famous first owner, though its great age would also have ensured a lofty price tag. The bottle was added to the Forbes collection and put on display under strong lights and at the wrong angle. These conditions caused the cork to fall out and what remained was the most expensive bottle of vinegar.

A drop of gold was unwillingly turned to stone and what might have been a sound investment was lost. However, it does give us the chance to turn our attention to the Château Lafite Rothschild, to the origins of that famed and eventually tarnished bottle. Carved into the bedrock under the Château is the exceptional Lafite wine cellar.

One enters this solemn and protected place via a stairway from the main entry hall. Within this vaulted space are almost all of the vintages produced from 1797 to 1914, nearly 1,500 bottles in all, including three from 1797, the year which saw Napoleon’s campaigns in Italy mark the end of the revolutionary era. More recent vintages, over 25,000 of the owner’s reserves, are stored in the great cellar.

Don’t expect a sample of any of the vintage bottles though. The Lafite cellar remains a place of worship and appreciation, a place that inspires humility, where even connoisseurs are reminded of the time required to produce wine of the highest quality. And these bottles will survive long past the time of those connoisseurs. As Baron Eric de Rothschild explains, “I am just a passing housekeeper of the Château Lafite Rothschild.”

The Château Lafite Rothschild is located in Pauillac in the Bordeaux region of France. Visits and tours are by appointment only with a minimum of two weeks advanced notice. Book via fax (+33 556 592 683) or by email (visites@lafite.com).