Christie’s Hong Kong’s latest vintage wine auction last Saturday saw some 2,000 bottles of vintage French burgundy wine from the storied Maison Bouchard Pere et Fils go under the hammer, its oldest bottle dating all the way from 1864.

From the Meursault-Charmes region, the 1864 vintage sold for HKD134,750 ($17,451) to an undisclosed bidder, far exceeding a top-ranged estimate of HKD80,000. As the oldest bottle in the Bouchard cellars, the wine boasts a pale golden color and a honeyed character.

“Early examples of Burgundy like those presented in the sale are extremely rare, with 16 bottles in our sale dating from the 19th century. The strong results from today’s sale, reflect how Burgundy wines continue to be avidly collected in the (Asian) region,” said Tim Triptree, senior specialist and head of sales for Christie’s wine department.

Another notable vintage, a 1865 Montrachet, also sold for HKD196,000, a price tag much more than the top range estimate of HKD60,000. The remarkable results come after Hong Kong’s abolishment of duties on wine imports in 2008, which made it a gateway to a prosperous wine market in mainland China. An austerity drive in China initially caused wariness in bagging high-end bottles amongst officials, but the market has since picked up.

Gilles de Larouziere, president of the Henriot wine group, which owns Maison Bouchard, had previously said the sale was taking place in Hong Kong because of “extraordinary enthusiasm for great French wines”.

Maison Bouchard Pere et Fils’ vineyards cover grounds spanning 130 hectares, of which 12 produce grand cru wines and 74 grow second-ranking premier crus. Currently helmed by the Henriot family of Champagne since 1995, the French wine producer was originally founded in 1731 and has a collection of around 150,000 bottles to date.

Find out more about the wines on auction via an interview with Christian Albouy, CEO of Domaine Bouchard Père & Fils.