(Decanter) - The first and largest of three planned auctions of Sir Alex Ferguson's wine cellar has fetched more than HK$29m (US$3.8m) at a sale hosted by Christie's in Hong Kong.
Domaine de la Romanee-Conti (DRC) and Chateau Petrus spearheaded the auction, which fetched HK$29.5m in total and was held at the Hong Kong Convention Centre on Saturday (24 May).

It has been a mixed start to 2014 for the global wine auction houses, with lots sometimes struggling to surpass pre-sale top estimates. One in ten of the Ferguson lots failed to sell.

However, buyers of the top lots appeared bullish. Some observers attributed this to the ex-football manager's celebrity status, and several bottles carried his autograph.

David Elswood, head of Christie's international wine department, said Chinese buyers dominated the auction, which he described as an 'excellent result' that showed high interest in rare and critically acclaimed Burgundy wine.

The top 10 lots in the auction were all DRC, with the list headed by a methuselah of Romanee-Conti 1997 at HK$1.225m. Its top estimate was HK$1m.

Ferguson, who retired as Manchester United manager last year after a 26-year reign during which he amassed more trophies than any other British football manager, has been collecting fine wines since the early 1990s.

In an exclusive interview published in Decanter's June issue, Ferguson said that he has received an annual allocation of DRC since 1996.

In second place in the Hong Kong auction was a six-bottle cache of Romanee-Conti 1999, which included a signed Manchester United replica shirt from that Champions League-winning year. The lot sold for HK$1.1m on a high estimate of HK$850,000.