Patrick Radden Keefe writes about the most expensive bottle of wine that was sold at Christies in London on December 5, 1985 (it had no label, but etched into the glass in a spindly hand was the year 1787, the word “Lafitte,” and the letters “Th.J.”) + the real characters behind the mystery label + other viewpoints @ http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/09/03/070903fa_fact_keefe
The story reminds me of spectacular mistakes made by experts based on experience and presumptions in gem identifiction (with/without testing equipments) + origin determination (with/without sophisticated analytical instruments) + the crazy prices collectors pay based on opinions by the same experts + the forgers ability to fool experts. In my view pricey gemstones and wines + their grading, provenance and pricing based on subjective concepts surprises me, all the time, yet collectors go for it with full knowledge that the product (s) they are buying may or may not be the real stuff.
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