Not interested in buying, but I can't believe how many lots have ullage, even for relatively young wines. Tons of scuffed/nicked labels also. Makes you question how a lot of these bottles were stored.

Also, who went deep on Pearl Morissette Cuvee Metis and is trying to dump it in the auction? Ouch. Plenty of other PM wine up as well.

hunch is a lot of restaurant lots in there.

The pricing makes absolutely no sense in many cases.

fyi - there's going to be a large auction in Alberta toward the end of March. Buyers premiums will be less as well. I'll post if I hear anything else.

i cant believe the prices sassicaia 16 fetched over the last few auctions

A couple of lots of interest, if they go for the estimated prices (which they never do).  More interested in a couple of lots in the spirits auction but same caveat. 

So. Much. Bordeaux.

@mangiare posted:

The pricing makes absolutely no sense in many cases.

fyi - there's going to be a large auction in Alberta toward the end of March. Buyers premiums will be less as well. I'll post if I hear anything else.

If you're talking the Iron Gate auction, I've been in touch with Warren and he's trying to find a temp controlled shipping service for this auction.  I suggested ATS but apparently they only use temp controlled trucks in Alberta.  Interesting, as they shipped a couple of cases I bought from Zyn in Calgary a few months back which I presumed would be in temp controlled trucks, given that it was ATS.

I put a bunch of lots in "watch" mode earlier this week, and ... wow the prices have been jacked up!  Seems worse than usual.  I've ignored all Bordeaux, and the other stuff (Burg, Rhone) seem to be at double retail prices already.   First time I've NOT put a bid in on a lot.  Craziness.

@riddler posted:

I put a bunch of lots in "watch" mode earlier this week, and ... wow the prices have been jacked up!  Seems worse than usual.  I've ignored all Bordeaux, and the other stuff (Burg, Rhone) seem to be at double retail prices already.   First time I've NOT put a bid in on a lot.  Craziness.

Indeed. I bid on the Clarendon Hills lot though I fear some may be over the Clarendon Hills, so to speak!  But I love those wines so here's hoping no one outbids me. If they do they can have them. Seems many lots are or may be too old, amongst the New World and Rhone bottles at least.

I've thrown bids at half a dozen lots only to watch prices spiral into the stratosphere.

Think about this:  For a lot where the 'winning' bid is $100:

- buyer pays $100 + 20% Buyers fee + 13% HST = $135.60.

- seller receives $85 after paying 15% Seller's fee.   

So on a $100 lot, $50.60 are collected in fees and taxes. Which is insane.

I can't wait until Dougie locates his huevos, takes on the union and privatizes the retail side to create a free and fair resale market.

@vint posted:

I've thrown bids at half a dozen lots only to watch prices spiral into the stratosphere.

Think about this:  For a lot where the 'winning' bid is $100:

- buyer pays $100 + 20% Buyers fee + 13% HST = $135.60.

- seller receives $85 after paying 15% Seller's fee.   

So on a $100 lot, $50.60 are collected in fees and taxes. Which is insane.

I can't wait until Dougie locates his huevos, takes on the union and privatizes the retail side to create a free and fair resale market.

Same here. Alberta would be a model that appeals to him, I'd think.

@vint posted:

I've thrown bids at half a dozen lots only to watch prices spiral into the stratosphere.

Think about this:  For a lot where the 'winning' bid is $100:

- buyer pays $100 + 20% Buyers fee + 13% HST = $135.60.

- seller receives $85 after paying 15% Seller's fee.   

So on a $100 lot, $50.60 are collected in fees and taxes. Which is insane.

I can't wait until Dougie locates his huevos, takes on the union and privatizes the retail side to create a free and fair resale market.

Seller's fee is now 20% plus 1% per month for "insurance."  Why the insurance premium varies with the sale price is beyond me, unless of course it's not actually for insurance but another grab by the auction house.

correct CSM but don't forget about the $20 'photo fee' per lot! pricks

The last time I sold with them, the 1% insurance  and the photo fee equated to $250?? I think that's why you see some weird lots of mix-matched wines.

If the total of what you sell is in excess of $8k, the sellers fee is reduced to 15% ++

I forgot the photo fee.  Have a lot in this auction and am disgusted about how much I’m paying these clowns.

@vint posted:

I've thrown bids at half a dozen lots only to watch prices spiral into the stratosphere.

Think about this:  For a lot where the 'winning' bid is $100:

- buyer pays $100 + 20% Buyers fee + 13% HST = $135.60.

- seller receives $85 after paying 15% Seller's fee.   

So on a $100 lot, $50.60 are collected in fees and taxes. Which is insane.

I can't wait until Dougie locates his huevos, takes on the union and privatizes the retail side to create a free and fair resale market.

The Soviet Union had a flourishing black market.  We don't even have that!

I’m planning on selling more wine but couldn’t bring myself to give it to them. Even with the insane bidding, i’ll most likely wait until the border reopens.  

I remember somebody bidding $200 for a $55 bottle of Dead Arm several years ago and thinking that this is an aberration, surely these people will come to their senses.

But then I never thought that Donald Trump would become the 'leader of the FREE world' in a 'landslide' election victory.

I have a lot to learn...

@otw posted:

But then I never thought that Donald Trump would become the 'leader of the FREE world' in a 'landslide' election victory.

I have a lot to learn...

As do we all!

@otw posted:

I remember somebody bidding $200 for a $55 bottle of Dead Arm several years ago and thinking that this is an aberration, surely these people will come to their senses.

But then I never thought that Donald Trump would become the 'leader of the FREE world' in a 'landslide' election victory.

I have a lot to learn...

I still remember discussing that with you, your wife and VinT at dinner in 2016.

There were a couple of OK prices. A mag of I think 1992? D'Yquem for mid $800 for instance. The Grange des Peres lot I thought hard about. The problem is you look at say that lot of 2009 Pontet Canet. Went for about $400/bottle which is silly and even more silly when all out the door that's north of $500/bottle. But as a seller you're getting $320 which is near WS low in the US.

@billhike posted:

I still remember discussing that with you, your wife and VinT at dinner in 2016.

Hopefully those days are returning soon.

@robsutherland posted:

There were a couple of OK prices. A mag of I think 1992? D'Yquem for mid $800 for instance. The Grange des Peres lot I thought hard about. The problem is you look at say that lot of 2009 Pontet Canet. Went for about $400/bottle which is silly and even more silly when all out the door that's north of $500/bottle. But as a seller you're getting $320 which is near WS low in the US.

Unless we sell privately to other Canadian collectors, our choices really are a rock (Waddington’s) or a hard place (US auctions or retailers).

As John pointed out, between the buyer’s premium, seller’s commission, photography fees and insurance, running a Canadian auction house is a lucrative business. But it’s not so different in the US.

Take your example of the 2009 Pontet Canet. WS low is currently $230 USD. But if you’re selling a bottle you won’t end up with $230 net in your pocket. If you sell outright to a retailer, you might get 75% of that. And if you consign to an auction house, their commissions are similar to Waddington’s. Here’s a current listing for 2009 Pontet Canet on WineBid:

WineBid current auction
Starting bid: $205 plus buyer’s premium and tax = $258.44
18% seller’s commission on the $205
WineBid nets $84.71 (combined buyer’s and seller’s commissions)
$173.73 net to seller = $218.48 CAD

If you had consigned that 2009 Pontet Canet to Waddington’s, and if you had consigned enough wine to put you over the $8,000 threshold (a reasonable assumption), the seller’s commission would be 15%. So your net result on the P-C after commission and $20 photography fee would be $327.83 CAD.

$218.48 CAD net via WineBid vs $327.83 CAD net via Waddington’s

And this doesn’t take into consideration how challenging it is for Canadians to transport their wine to US auction houses or retailers: getting it across the border, shipping it (you can’t ship alcohol in the US without a permit, so you have to misrepresent it as some other kind of liquid such as olive oil, which means you also can’t insure it)... There are options like Iron Gate, but I don’t expect you’d be much further ahead going that route.

Kudos to John Szabo and WineAlign for the informative article on the upcoming auction in Alberta. Critical excerpt:

"Register at IronGateAuctions.com to receive updates and detailed information and early access to the inaugural auction catalogue beginning on March 13, as well as notifications of all upcoming auctions.

And for those new to the auction scene, Iron Gate Auctions is hosting a useful Demystifying Wine Auctions free webinar on Sunday, March 21 at 8 p.m. E.S.T. / 5 p.m. P.S.T. featuring Stephen Ranger, Canada’s foremost wine auctioneer and Director of Ranger Wine Inc. Participants will learn how an online auction works, get buying strategies for success and hear expert analysis of hot commodities and smart buys before the first online auction opens for bids. Anyone interested in attending this free webinar can register at www.irongateauctions.com/webinar."

I registered this morning. Should be interesting. Buyers are charged a premium of 17.5% plus 5% sales tax. There's no indication of what the seller's premium is.

What also isn't clear is if Warren will be warehousing the wine in - and shipping from - Alberta or Ontario. It would be GREAT if the wine was warehoused in Ontario so we can avoid third-party shipping fees.

EDIT: I just read the Wine Align article. So the wines WILL be warehoused in Alberta. So we'll have to factor in the shipping cost when calculating our bid threshold.

@sunnylea57 posted:

I registered this morning. Should be interesting. Buyers are charged a premium of 17.5% plus 5% sales tax. There's no indication of what the seller's premium is.

What also isn't clear is if Warren will be warehousing the wine in - and shipping from - Alberta or Ontario. It would be GREAT if the wine was warehoused in Ontario so we can avoid third-party shipping fees.

EDIT: I just read the Wine Align article. So the wines WILL be warehoused in Alberta. So we'll have to factor in the shipping cost when calculating our bid threshold.

I was in touch with Warren who led me to believe that it was warehouse in Alberta as we discussed shipping options from there.

Just saw this on Irongate's website:

Free Shipping Details

Well that’s a huge bonus.

I wonder if they would bundle several buyers' orders together and ship to a single address to clear the $1k threshold if needed.

I suspect once information about this auction becomes more widely known we will see pushback from OPSEU, who violently oppose anything that even remotely resembles a step toward a freer market.