- Highest Value Wine Auction Ever Staged in Africa
- Unprecedented Range of Wines and Vintages with
corresponding unique NFTs - Online Sale at Strauss & Co Open 3 to 10 July
- Highly Rare Opportunity to Buy Superb Wines at Scale
- Donation to SASA from Proceeds to Further African
Sommelier Development
Strauss & Co Fine Wine Auctions unveils six significant collections of the
world’s greatest wines, that have also been minted as NFTs, including Penfolds Grange,
Domaine de La Romanée Conti, Château Mouton Rothchild, Château d’Yquem, Screaming
Eagle and Harlan Estate that will be sold online in July 2023 (Registration and Bidding now
open – visit www.straussart.co.za). A highly rare offering to global wine collectors takes
place after the inaugural successful sale of Iconic South African Wine NFTs in 2022.
“Considering the size and depth of these impressive, unique collections, and the critical
need for authenticity, we saw the advantage of minting each wine as an NFT”, said Roland
Peens, Strauss & Co Wine Fine Wine Senior Specialist. “We authenticated and
photographed each bottle with the information now stored on the blockchain. This is a
chance to buy a super rare collection or invest in an alternative asset. Fine wine has proven
to be an uncorrelated long-term asset with low volatility and the NFTs adds further
security.”
Superb Provenance and Meticulous Authentication
The Coats Family Cellar is arguably the most prestigious fine wine collection ever offered in South Africa. It contains an expansive range of the world’s finest and most sought-after wines spanning over 150 years. Collected over many decades by the Coats family, as part of an extensive cellar, the wines were imported from Ireland into South Africa via refrigerated container and have been cellared professionally since.
Each bottle is in top condition. ‘Mr Coats had a clear passion for Penfolds Grange and
Mouton- Rothschild, but there are few great wines from the 20th century that weren’t in
the cellar. The d’Yquem lot is also expansive and very special!’ continues Roland. Leading
International fine wine expert, Michael Egan, has scrutinised and authenticated every
bottle, and over 100 bottles have been tasted.
NFTs and Wine
Non-fungible tokens are a highly efficient way to package a collection of wines for long term aging or trading. The digital contract is stored on the Polygon blockchain and the NFT
includes the critical information of the transaction regarding provenance, barcode, pictures,
pricing, along with sensorial and aging information. Each bottle within the SIX NFTs is also
minted as an NFT, allowing for drinking or trading of single bottles at any time.
Transactions on the Polygon blockchain are cheap, fast and consume marginal energy.
All wines are currently stored in the professional cellars of Wine Cellar, in Cape Town,
Africa’s largest fine wine cellar. Professional world-wide shipping can also be arranged, at
negligible costs considering the high value of the wines. Payment can be made in ZAR, USD,
GBP as well as BTC, ETH and stable coins.
Fine Wine in Africa and Donation to Wine and Food Non-Profit Organization
The Coats family donated R4m ($200,000) of their cellar to charity and wine education in
Southern Africa. “Crucial international benchmarks are increasingly priced out of arm’s reach
for aspiring young African professionals’ education”, says Higgo Jacobs, co-founder of SASA –
South African Sommelier Association – and Strauss & Co Senior Fine Wine Specialist.
A portion of the NFT sale will go to SASA, the South African Sommelier Association, a
registered NPO that promotes a culture of food and beverage service excellence in South
Africa through education. ‘A lot of ground has been made to create opportunities over recent
years, however, much remains to be done. This partnership will provide a further shot in the
arm to level the playing field and create access for African sommeliers”, continues Higgo.
Zimbabwean wine celebrity, sommelier and Kumusha producer, Tinashe Nyamudoka, says
“drinking and experiencing these wines is the only way to feel a sense of place. I’m excited
because the African wine palate is maturing, and we see more and more fine wine being
consumed and more sommeliers. However, access and education are still limited. ‘ Tinashe recently starred in Blind Ambition as part of team Zimbabwe competing in the world wine-
tasting championships.
Click here to see the wines that they have on sale for the month of July.
