elBulli to Sell its Wine Cellar

            

           Today I read online through a Catalan news website that the famous elBulli restaurant is completely selling everything inside its famous wine cellar.  The total value estimated of these wines is between 1,6-1,6 million euros and all the profit will go towards Ferran Adria’s newly created BulliFoundation, which will open its doors in 2014.  It is very sad to hear that they are getting rid of their wine cellar, because not only is it very famous, but it is something very personal to Adria and his partner Juli Soler.  It took around 27 years for them to collect the over 8.000 bottles of wine, which is not some small task.  Many of the bottles were designed especially for the restaurant, and were never meant to be sold to the general public.  Sotheby’s, the famous auction house will be holding two separate biddings for the cellar, one held in Honk Kong, and the other in New York City.

            Ferran refers to the collection as “unique and exceptional,” which for a man of such fame and taste, this is no small comment.  I hope that this three time Michelin-star winner knows what he is doing when he decided to sell the cellar, and I only wish the best for his new BulliFoundation.  It is very sad indeed that he will not be reopening the restaurant, because it has grown into something more than just a place to eat.  For me, it represents a gathering point for people across the world that have a passion for food and a desire for the unusual.  I can only hope that someday he will decide to once again start cooking for the people, but until that day comes I can only wait.