A stash of ultra-rare French wine that outlasted Nazis, communists, and a castle floorboard has finally been brought back to life. Several bottles of Château d'Yquem from 1892 and 1896, part of a 136-bottle cache found in the 1980s under the chapel of Becov nad Teplou castle in western Czechia, have been restored by the famed Bordeaux estate that made them, CBS News reports. The full hoard—valued at around $5 million, according to the Czech National Heritage Institute—once belonged to the Beaufort-Spontin noble family, who fled Czechoslovakia for Austria at the end of World War II amid suspicions of Nazi collaboration, leaving the wine hidden alongside a famed medieval shrine.
Communist secret police eventually uncovered the collection after an American businessman tried to retrieve it for the family in 1984. Only in the past decade did restoration begin, with Château d'Yquem confirming the bottles' authenticity, extracting wine through the corks with needles, and replacing corks and bottles as needed. Cellar master Toni El Khawand says the cold, humid underground cellar offered "excellent conditions to store a wine," per Reuters, though oxygen exposure meant just five of eight original bottles could be fully restored and sent back to the castle. El Khawand said tasting the high-sugar white wine was "a magical experience," noting its surprising freshness and complex aromas. The broader collection will now go on display as the castle fundraises to study and possibly restore the remaining bottles.
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