A New Restaurant
When the prince joined the company, its new Paris office had only two people working. Now it employs 350.

His latest brand expansion of Domaine Clarence Dillon is something no first-growth has ever attempted: a luxurious Parisian restaurant. Le Clarence, housed in an elegant 19th century mansion, opened last November. (He bought it in an arcane historic process still used by French notaries: vente a la bougie, whereby candles are lit to commence the bidding; when the last candle goes out, the person with the highest bid wins.)

The restaurant concept, says Prince Robert, grew out of the eight lavish 75th Anniversary events he held in cities around the world in 2010 to celebrate his family’s connection with the château once touted by Thomas Jefferson and to raise Haut-Brion’s international profile.

“I wanted to recreate the atmosphere of Haut-Brion’s château, so you feel like you are dining in a home,” said the prince, who oversaw the decoration. The several dining rooms are named after former owners of Haut-Brion, including Talleyrand. Naturally the restaurant’s wine list is well stocked: There are 35 vintages of La Mission Haut-Brion, nearly 40 of Haut-Brion. A bottle of the sublime 1989 costs €5,115 ($5,761).

On the ground floor is a wine shop, where he hopes to create “an embassy for fine French wine.”

Prince Robert likes to bring up history at every opportunity, reminding me, as he has before, that Haut-Brion is the oldest great wine luxury brand in the world.

Underscoring its importance has clearly had an effect. In the 2015 edition of Liv-Ex’s Power 100 brands, released last December, Haut-Brion had moved up from position 13 in 2012 to No. 2, right behind Mouton Rothschild.

Still, he isn’t stuck in the past. He has hiked the Himalayas, run the New York Marathon, even attended Jay-Z and Kanye West concerts—which, he hastened to add, were his wife’s idea.

Five of the Prince’s Wines Available for Purchase:
2012 Château Haut-Brion ($400)

Though not from a great vintage, this big, rich red shows the dark tobacco-y, smoky complexity the wine is noted for and is the best of the first-growths in this year. Plus, it costs less than the 2015 (worth buying as futures at $510), which won’t be on shelves until 2018.