Exclusive Interview – Christie’s Wine Director and new MW, Tim Triptree talks about fine & rare wines

Tim Triptree, MW, International Director, Christie’s responsible for Europe, Asia and the Americas

Promoted earlier this year as International Director, Specialist in the Wine Department, Tim Triptree is in charge of Christie’s activities across Continental Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Tim joined Christie’s Wine Department in 2005 after graduating with an MBA Distinction (Wine Business Management). He is also a Master of Wine, one of only ten to qualify this year. In January 2013, he was seconded to Christie’s Hong Kong working in the Asian market and becoming Head of Sales, before returning to London in January 2017. Reva K Singh interviews Tim Triptree, uncovering some fascinating nuggets of information about fine and rare wines.

Founded in London by James Christie in 1766, Christie’s Auctioneers has auctioned some of the finest and rarest wines and spirits from around the world. What has changed now that it is owned by Group Artémis? We have opened new offices and sales locations – such as the Middle Eastern operation in 2006 – which is less a priority for my department but had a massive impact on the overall operation of the company. We have increased our Hong Kong operation from 40 to over 140 people and the wine sales and client bases have expanded dramatically. Shanghai is another new market and Moscow and neighboring countries were a strong focus for the company as of 2005.