Pricey Wines Vanish from Famous Parisian Restaurant, Loss Exceeds €1.5 Million

One of Paris' renowned restaurants, La Tour d'Argent, has lost several valuable wine bottles worth over €1.5 million. Among them is one of the world's most expensive wines, Romanée-Conti, as reported by the BBC.

The loss was discovered during a routine inventory of the wine cellar. In comparison to the 2020 inventory, 83 bottles of expensive wine are now missing. The restaurant owners filed a complaint with the police, but law enforcement has not yet found any signs of a crime. However, the restaurant notes that due to the unique numbering of the bottles, it will be challenging for the thieves to sell them discreetly. Of course, this won't stop them from simply enjoying the precious wine.

Among the missing bottles are wines from the Burgundian estate Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, renowned for its exceptionally expensive wines. In 2018, a bottle of Romanée-Conti from the year 1945 was sold for €482,000, making it the world's most expensive bottle at that time.

It's worth mentioning that La Tour d'Argent is well-known for its wine cellar. The restaurant's wine list weighs approximately 8 kg and is delivered to patrons on a cart.

Overall, La Tour d'Argent has a long and fascinating history and has been at the center of historical events multiple times. During the Nazi occupation of Paris in 1940, the restaurant owner, Claude Terrail, concealed his most valuable bottles behind a fake wall in the cellar after the Nazis seized the building.

The establishment has hosted numerous heads of state and monarchs, including Queen Elizabeth II, who dined there in 1948. Among other notable guests are Charlie Chaplin, Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt, Salvador Dalí, Brad Pitt, and Angelina Jolie.

The restaurant's ambiance inspired the creation of the animated film "Ratatouille" in 2007, telling the story of a young rat aspiring to become a chef in a famous restaurant. An illustration of a rat, signed by director Brad Bird, hangs on the restaurant's wall, depicting Bird spending days sketching the minutest details, such as lamps, cheese carts, and the maître d's attire.

The restaurant is often referred to as the "oldest restaurant in Paris" with a history dating back to 1582. However, historians dismiss this claim. Patrick Rambourg, a researcher at Paris Cité University and author of the book "The History of Gastronomic Paris, from the Middle Ages to Our Days," stated that the idea of La Tour dʼArgent being the oldest restaurant in the city is a "fable." He added that the concept of a restaurant as a dining establishment did not exist in the 16th century.