Inside One of the World’s Greatest Hotel Wine Cellars | The Connaught with Lucas Reynaud-Paligot

For Episode 3 of The Back Label Series, we go behind the scenes at The Connaught, home to one of the most important hotel wine collections in the world. Guided by Head of Wine, Lucas Reynaud-Paligot, we tour the cellar in depth - not just the cult classics but how a world-class collection is actually built, organised, and maintained. In this episode, we explore: 00:00 Entering the cellar 00:50 Bordeaux – 200 bottles of Pétrus 07:32 Romanée-Conti by the glass & oldest bottles 11:24 Burgundy & cellar management 14:26 Roumier, Premier Cru vs Grand Cru debate 17:23 Underrated gems & New World favourites 18:38 Syrah vs Shiraz & Harlan Estate 22:22 Most expensive bottles (£40–50k) 25:23 Champagne section 30:13 Collecting & investing in wine 34:28 DRC wall & Hermitage 37:25 1985 Sassicaia 38:14 Total value of the collection This isn’t about excess - it’s about precision, provenance, and long-term thinking. How decisions are made, how wines are tracked, and how a cellar of this scale remains coherent, relevant, and alive. Filmed on location at The Connaught, London. Subscribe for future episodes featuring producers, collectors, critics, and the people shaping fine wine culture globally.