Thursday, September 18, 2008

The Billionaire's Vinegar (book review by PB)


By Benjamin Wallace, the book chronicles the controversial sale(s) of the most expensive bottle of wine ever bought. Touted to be one of Thomas Jefferson's own inventory, the 1787 Lafite with the initials Th.J. on the bottle was bought by Malcom Forbes for $156,000.

The famed Jefferson bottle was only one of numerous such bottles from different chateau of famous Bordeaux sold to various individuals all linked to a German wine peddler named Hardy Rodenstock.

This book is expertly written and is both a real life mystery as well as an education in the world of wine, the eccentricities of people with way too much money on their hands for their own good, and a study in the relationship between the intrinsic value of something versus the perceived value of the same.

This is a wonderful book for the wine devotee you know, but even beyond that, it is just a fascinating and intriguing read! Raise a book!

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