Christian Vannequé
Christian Vannequé (20 August 1949 – 9 January 2015) was a French sommelier and restaurateur.
In 1967, he began at the three star Tour d'Argent restaurant in Paris as an assistant cellar man. He rose to become the restaurant's head sommelier, at 20 years old the youngest head sommelier in France. He served as an expert wine taster at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. He also participated in The Judgment of Paris 30th Anniversary on the 30th anniversary of the Paris event.
In later years, Vannequé opened restaurants of his own in France, the United States, and Bali.
On July 26, 2011, Vannequé set a record for the highest price paid for a bottle of white wine. He purchased a bottle of Chateau d'Yquem, vintage 1811, for £75,000 (US$123,000) from The Antique Wine Company. He stated he purchased it for his own pleasure, and intended to open it at a dinner party in August 2017 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his career.[1]
References
- ↑ Decanter Magazine (2011). "Chateau d'Yquem bottle fetches £75,000".
- "Christian Vanneque (1949 – 2015)". 23 January 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
Further reading
- Taber, George M. Judgment of Paris: California vs France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting that Revolutionized Wine. NY: Scribner, 2005.
- Chapman, Glenn. California wines win epic rematch The Standard (China), May 26, 2006