Mystery buyer purchases Penfolds Grange set for world record price

An anonymous Sydney buyer has set a new world record for the purchase of a complete set of Penfolds Grange.

The buyer splashed out $431,000 on a rare set of 64 bottles containing ever vintage from 1951 to 2015.

Lecturer in wine studies at Melbourne University, Chris Barnes, says the value of the set comes from its collectability, which is “a great shame”.

“The problem is as soon as you open any of the unprocurable bottles, the older ones, you’ve destroyed the set and so you’ve, I guess, destroyed its collectable value,” he told Stephen Quartermain and Tony Leonard, filling in for Ross and Russel.

If he were to drink any bottle of Penfolds Grange, Mr Barnes says the 1959 would be his choice.

“It’s one of the great years and it is, I think, one of the older ones that would certainly be alive,” he said.

The previous auction record for a complete set of Penfolds Grange was set in December last year, when a set sold for $372,800.

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