19th-century bottle of sherry being auctioned off

By Danny Halpin via SWNS

A 19th century bottle of sherry discovered in the cellar of the Duke of Wellington's house is due to go up for auction.

The rare bottle of fortified wine was bottled at the Duke's London home Apsley House around about the time of his death in 1852.

The sherry was originally bought in 1977 at a Christie’s sale of wines from the house situated at Hyde Park Corner and has been stored in a Hampshire cellar ever since.

A bottle from a similar 1865 collection was tasted in 2020 at Christies and the tasting note read:

“At over 150 years of age, it looked almost like a young en rama Manzanilla. On tasting, the 1865 was well-balanced, chalky and lightly nutty with a characteristic smoky edge. Its color and youthful gait made it hard to believe it was bottled when Abraham Lincoln was President of the United States.”

Mark Robertson, Head of Dreweatts Wine Department, said: “A hero to the Spanish, keen Flamenco dancer and no fan of the French, it is of little wonder that it was sherry found in the cellars of the Duke of Wellington’s London home Apsley House.

“I suggest enjoying it, as the Iron Duke would have himself, with his favorite meal of cuts of cold meat, such as Serrano ham.

“It is estimated to fetch £300-£700 when it goes under the hammer in July, but due to its exceptional provenance it could sell for much more.”

The sherry was bottled in Apsley House in central London sometime between 1850 and 1870.

After his historic victory at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, Wellington was awarded £700,000 ($841,998) from Parliament to build a new Waterloo Palace.

Instead, he put in an anonymous, winning bid of £40,000 ( $48,114) to buy Apsley House to help his brother, who owned the lease at that time and was struggling financially.

Wellington went on to become Prime Minister from 1828-1830 and again in 1834.

Somewhat of a fashion icon at the time, the Duke sparked off the first ever Wellington Boots after asking his bootmaker to design a shorter style for the changing styles of men’s trousers.

They have since become a household staple with the trusty boots now being worn for any muddy occasion, from festivals to fly fishing and sludging through farmer’s fields.