France · Burgundy

Domaine d'Auvenay

Domaine d'Auvenay is the personal estate of Lalou Bize-Leroy, co-owner and former co-director of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, and one of the most expensive sources of Burgundy in the world. Established in the 1980s in Saint-Romain, the domaine farms approximately 4 hectares of grand cru and premier cru vineyards biodynamically, producing quantities so minuscule that individual cases are almost impossible to obtain at release. The auction database's 318 lots — averaging $3,394 per bottle — represent an extraordinary concentration of value, with the Bonnes Mares Grand Cru averaging $5,438 per bottle and the Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet averaging $6,879. The Bourgogne Aligoté Sous Châtelet is a paradox: a theoretically humble appellation wine that averages $2,286 per bottle purely because Lalou Bize-Leroy farms it. The Puligny-Montrachet Les Folatières at $4,508 average and Mazis-Chambertin at $1,421 complete the top-tier portfolio. With top vintages in 1996 and 2007, the domaine's cellar depth only compounds demand. Fewer than 200 cases are produced across all wines combined in most vintages, making the secondary market essentially the only realistic route to acquisition.