A 6-liter bottle of Chateau Lafite 1982 fetched HK$363,000 ($46,700), nearly twice its presale high estimate, at a sold-out wine auction in Hong Kong as the quest for rarity and inflation concerns drove prices higher.

The 10-hour sale yesterday of more than 800 lots tallied HK$52.9 million, beating host Sotheby's own forecast of HK$40 million. Bidders at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel drank glasses of Louis Roederer Blanc de Blanc 2003 and Haut Brion 1998 as they competed with online bidders for choice items, such as twin 1.5- liter bottles of Chateau Petrus 1982 that fetched HK$435,600, against the lot’s top estimate of HK$130,000. Estimates don't include commission.

As economies such as China show signs of inflation while the government increases spending to sustain growth, some buyers are converting their currency into assets such as fine wine to protect their wealth, said Agnes Hon, a private-equity investor and wine collector who bought several lots at the sale. Others buy simply to enjoy their purchases, said Kevin Ching, Sotheby's Asia chief executive. That's especially true of mainland Chinese buyers, who won at least a quarter of the bids at the auction, he said in a telephone interview.

"Many Chinese buy to drink, entertain and impress," said Ching. "That's good, because it means they would have to replenish their stock and buy more often"”

Hong Kong scrapped wine duties in February 2008, spurring demand. The city held 14 wine auctions last year worth almost HK$500 million. In October, Sotheby’s said Hong Kong has surpassed London as its second-largest market, behind only New York.