The US publisher Malcolm Forbes (1919-1990) was a collector of curiosities, including old wines. He paid an incredible 105,000 pounds (160,000 dollars) for a bottle of Château Lafite-Rothschild vintage 1787 at an auction organised by Christie's on 5 December 1985. This makes it one of the absolutely most expensive wines in the world. Seller was the German Hardy Rodenstock (1941-2018). According to his story, this bottle was discovered together with eleven other bottles from the same winery and vintage, as well as other very old wines from Château Margaux, Château Mouton-Rothschild and Château d'Yquem walled into the wall of a cellar in Paris. However, he never gave the name of the finder or the address of the place where they were found. Experts of the auction house had previously confirmed after expertises that glass and engraving actually date from the 18th century. Rodenstock later always referred to this fact (although these facts are no clear proof of the authenticity of the wine in it).
The dark green glass bottle was closed with a cork sealed with thick black wax. The letters "Th.J.", the year "1787" and "Lafitte" (sic - at that time the name was still written with two "t") were carved into the glass. According to the initials, it thus (perhaps) formerly belonged to the third US President Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826). At that time he was US ambassador in Paris and a great lover of French wines. It was concluded that he had forgotten to take the bottles with him on his return to the USA. The auction, led by the famous taster Michael Broadbent, started at 10,000 pounds, which increased to 105,000 pounds in just two minutes. The highest bidder was Christopher Forbes, son of Malcolm Forbes.
Forbes had a private museum in New York adapted, where he had the complete Oval Office from the founding days of the US Republic specially furnished for the Jefferson era. Jefferson's original dining table was also exhibited there and Forbes is said to have said "that this old bottle with the initials Th.J. would make a very special addition to it". Furthermore he said: "This bottle is more fun than the opera-guitarist Abraham Lincoln held in his hand when he was shot. And we have that one, too". The filling level was extremely high for a bottle of this age, only half an inch under the cork. Tragically, however, it was displayed in this museum under a bright, hot light. The cork crumbled and the precious contents spoiled in a short time. But the wine would never have been drunk as a pure prestige object anyway. Later, other Lafite 1787 bottles were acquired by the US billionaire William Koch. Subsequently there were forgery charges, lawsuits and settlements, see the detailed history under Hardy Rodenstock.
