Wine Collector Cashes In

Author(s): Susan Tuz
THE NEWS-TIMES
Date: June 3, 2003
Section: Local
Article ID: story51011

Richard Bakal does not consider himself a purveyor of fine wines despite that fact that he is selling wines from his family collection that include the labels of the top 25 Bordeaux vineyards. "I am a private collector," Bakal said, "who is in the process of liquidating his private family collection."

Following the tradition of European family collections, Bakal has purchased only outstanding vintages, buying directly from the Bordeaux valley in France.

For the past 30 years, he has been acquiring and storing these wines undisturbed until they reach their "optimum" age. As he has started selling these wines, he has kept shipping to an absolute minimum under carefully controlled conditions.

The most expensive of his wines, 1970 Petrus, sells for $15,000 a case. And while he is selling off his private stock, he takes pleasure in making these fine wines available to other connoisseurs.

"When it became clear that my family was not going to consume the collection, that they were not as enthusiastic as I was, I reluctantly concluded by the mid-1980s that it was time to look for a sensible way to dispose of the collection that I had been building since 1973," Bakal said from his Ridgefield office of The Wine Trust.

By the late 1980s, California had passed laws allowing private collectors to sell wine through auction and to sell to licensed wine distributors in that state. By 1993, Illinois and New York passed similar laws. Bakal sells to retailers and high end restaurants that are licensees in those states.

By the 21st century, fine wines of top vintages had become one of the most stable commodities that one could deal in. "Forbes" magazine's 2001 Collector's Guide listed fine wine as outperforming all other categories of collectibles in the S&P 500, according to sales figures gleaned from worldwide dealers and auction houses. Bakal's private collection is as good as gold.

One of the aspects of the world of wine that lends credence to Bakal's claim of offering wines of "top vintage" is these labels ratings by Robert Parker, "the most powerful wine writer or critic anyplace," Bakal said.

Parker's ratings make or break a wine label, Bakal explained. And Bakal is careful to make those wines from his collection available with chateau labels that have Parker ratings of 90 or higher.

"His influence is just enormous. To get a Parker rating of 90 or more assures that the wine is success. Prices go way up. Everybody is anxious to have them," Bakal explained. Among those highly Parker-rated wine labels are Mouton Rothschild Bordeaux 1985, 1986 and 1989. Bakal offers those, also La Mission Haut Brion 1986 through 1990. The list could go on.

"The wine trade is an inherently fascinating one," Bakal noted. "Wine is complicated and the people who are drawn to work in wine are most always dedicated to wine. They love the field. They love the product. An extra benefit of this is the quality of people that one deals with in this. The closer you get to the vineyard, the more interesting the people are."

Bakal would not reveal the exact size of his wine reserve, but did indicate that it is "very large."
As changes continue in the world of fine wine, he plans to embark on a new enterprise, which he calls Wine Trust II. That will be to build on his accomplishments over the last 30 years in collecting top

Bordeaux and invite other investors to join him and include other great wines from around the world in the collection. He also plans to expand worldwide distribution. For further information on The Wine Trust, Contact 888-946-3878 or visit the website www.thewinetrust.com.

Copyright, 2003, The News-Times (Danbury, CT)

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