Penfolds 1951 at auction
(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

The price, including a 16.5% buyer’s premium, smashed the previous record of A$103,000, which was also paid for a bottle of Grange 1951 – the inaugural vintage of the legendary Australian wine – at a Langton’s auction in July 2020.

The bottle auctioned at the weekend, which had been signed by Grange winemaker Max Schubert and recorked by him at Penfolds’ Magill Estate in August 1988, was sold to a Sydney-based wine collector during the Langton’s Penfolds Rewards of Patience sale, which closed last night (18 July).

Schubert only made three or four barrels of the wine in 1951, and gave away most of the bottles to friends after the Penfolds board rejected the wine and ordered him to shut down the project – which he continued in secret for almost a decade.

‘This is extraordinary,’ said Langton’s head of auctions Tamara Grischy. ‘Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought a bottle of Australian wine would sell for this much.

‘However, this is a unicorn of a wine, and one of the finest bottles we’ve ever seen come through at Langton’s. The buyer is thrilled to have secured this fine piece of Australian wine history for their collection.’

The record-breaking auction coincided with the 70th anniversary of Grange. Current Penfolds chief winemaker Peter Gago said: ‘After 70 years of unbroken vintage releases, Grange continues to surprise and reward. Much to celebrate.’

The weekend sale included Grange vintages spanning the period from 1951 to 1959, which sold for a combined total of A$301,000, as well as a range of other rare Penfolds wines from the 1950s.

The Penfolds Australia Collection 2021, including the latest Grange vintage, 2017, is due to be released on Thursday, 5 August.

Related content:

Penfolds collection 2020

Rare wine ‘destined’ for Napoleon, Grand Constance 1821, fetches £21k

How do online wine auctions work? Ask Decanter

Richard Woodard
Richard Woodard
Decanter Magazine, Wine & Spirits Writer

Richard Woodard is a freelance wine and spirits writer based in the UK. Aside from Decanter, he writes for several wine trade and media outlets including Imbibe, The Drinks Business, Harpers and Drinks International.

Since 2015 he has been the magazine editor of Scotchwhisky.com. He has formerly worked as a wine news reporter at Imbibe and a feature writer for Halycon Magazine.