A collection exceeding €1.5 million in rare vintage wines has mysteriously vanished from the renowned La Tour D’Argent, one of Paris’s most esteemed restaurants, without any apparent signs of a break-in. [read the full champagne story]
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Famed for its Michelin-starred menu featuring the iconic pressed duck specialty, panoramic views of Notre Dame, and a vast wine cellar housing approximately 300,000 bottles, La Tour D’Argent holds a special place in culinary history. Serving as the inspiration for Gusteau’s restaurant in Disney Pixar’s Ratatouille, the restaurant recently made headlines when staff discovered the absence of 83 rare wine bottles during a routine inventory check.
The police were summoned to investigate the disappearance, revealing that the stolen vintages, with a collective value exceeding €1.5 million, went missing between January 2020 and January 2024. Notably, there were no visible signs of a forced entry, leading authorities to suspect a discreet heist.
Among the missing bottles were prized selections from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, a renowned producer of some of the world’s most exquisite and expensive wines. Connoisseurs are known to pay upwards of €14,000 for a 2011 vintage bottle, while online sellers price a 1999 DRC Grand Cru at approximately €28,000.
La Tour D’Argent, boasting a rich history dating back 442 years, underwent a significant renovation in 2022 and reopened late in the previous summer. As part of its reopening celebration, the restaurant compiled a weighty “wine bible” detailing its cellar contents, now noticeably lighter.
Over the years, La Tour D’Argent has hosted numerous heads of state and A-list celebrities, including Queen Elizabeth II, Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt, Charlie Chaplin, Salvador Dalí, Steven Spielberg, and Sir Paul McCartney. Despite the setback, the iconic restaurant still offers an extensive selection from its remaining 299,917 bottles for future distinguished guests, proving that sometimes, “sip happens.”
