Eight bottles of Chateau d'Yquem French sweet white wine from 1892 and 1896 were discovered in the 1980s beneath the floor of Becov nad Teplou castle in western Czechia [1, 2]. The noble Beaufort-Spontin family hid the bottles before fleeing Czechoslovakia around the end of World War II due to suspected Nazi collaboration [1, 2].
Communist secret police found the wine bottles in 1985 during a search but only removed and restored a nearby shrine; the wine itself remained forgotten for decades until a stock-taking in 2016 rediscovered the bottles [1, 2]. Chateau d'Yquem experts, led by cellar master Toni El Khawand, tested and carefully restored the eight bottles by re-corking and bottling to protect their contents [1, 2]. El Khawand described the process as "unveiling a time capsule," adding, "We pull out this cork that has sealed the liquid off from its surroundings and, in a way, from the passage of time" [1].
Despite some oxidation during restoration, five of the original bottles were returned intact to Becov castle [1, 2]. The wine maintained high freshness and complexity with aromas of cedar, saffron, cinnamon, nutmeg, dried fruit, chocolate, and coffee [1, 2]. The Czech National Heritage Institute estimates the entire collection of 136 bottles at Becov castle, including the restored wines, could be worth about 5 million USD [2].
Becov castle is currently raising funds to publicly exhibit the restored Chateau d'Yquem alongside other rare collections in the future [1, 2].
