The Oracle Paradis Wine Fund last week said it had acquired the oldest surviving bottle of white wine from the most distinguished of the Jura vineyards in France: a 1781 Château Chalon. At a tasting last week, people could drink wines such as a 1895, which is the oldest bottle of Château Chalon opened for tasting in the UK in recent memory and the last vintage from the pre-phylloxera era in the region.

The fund shelled out €38,000 ($50.787) for the 1781 bottle, acquiring it directly from the private family cellar of Jean Bourdy, the oldest producer in the region. Bourdy’s direct family line can be traced back to the 16th century; the family cellars contain the oldest collection of vintage Château Chalon and Côtes du Jura in existence.

The Oracle Paradis Wine Fund was launched earlier this year, and recently announced it had already reached $5 million of funds under management. The fund acquires rare items, such as bottles of Cognac Clos de Griffier 1789 from the cellars of the famous La Tour d'Argent restaurant in Paris.

Alas, your correspondent was unable to make the tasting due to prior commitments. Such are the occasional disappointments of busy financial journalism.