I bought a couple of bottles of Penfolds Grange, Vintage 1992, about 7 or 8 years ago. I believed I paid a good price for them - about $500 for both bottles. The idea was that when our daughter turned 21 we would either drink it or sell it. She turned 21 earlier this month and we were not interested in drinking them and I thought I'd sell them today.
In perfect condition, it seems they would be worth $600 today. However, one had a slight bleed (a miniscule amount of wine had bled out of one bottle) and the other has a tinsy 2mm nick on the label - so at auction they are worth probably less than that. Other than my home, most of my financial investments haven't been that great or really haven't been investments at all.
My father realized some terrific investments. The ones I remember are two beach boxes that he paid $15,000 for and sold them three years later for $40,000. If he was to sell them today they would be worth many times that. He also bought a number plate for his car - maybe $300 - for the stock standard fee and sold it for $11,000 many years later.
What unusual investments have you bought that have turned into gold or what do you think you could buy now that might make you a motza in say 5 years time?
Rams Home loans floated on the stock market at about $2.30 a share around three weeks before the GFC.They dropped to 30 cents a share shortly after. Same company, same assets so I bought $10,000 worth. The share price kept dropping down to 15 cents. I had lost $5,000 on paper, when the wife and I found a great property we desired. Needing about $5,000 to make up the deposit I sold the Ram shares. About 12 months later they were worth $1.10 each. Ouch
Duff beer when it first came out
bought a case, it was crap
drank it still and threw the cans out
weeks later it was withdrawn from sale and the price went through the roof
I remember seeing single cans being advertised in the trading post for like three hundred each
Speaking of penfolds grange...about 12yrs ago at my grandmother's 80th, a few of us grandkids (all adults at that stage) wandered up to the 'tuckerbag' bottle-shop. After selecting a range of beers and a few bottles of wine, the young checkout chick asked my cousin, whom she was serving at the time "anything else?".
His smart-arse reply was "only if you have a bottle of grange shiraz 1990?" To his surprise she checks the system and goes "it looks like we do - in the cellar, I'll go and get it".
She returned with a full unbroken box of the wine and looked at my cousin and goes "it's very expensive - priced at $280 per bottle...that must be incorrect. It must be per box - if you want, I'll split the box and sell you one individually."
My cousin couldn't contain his excitement and told her he'll take the whole box! (for the $280)
He spent most of the night going out to his car to just look at the box wrapped in towels in the boot of his car... lucky bugger!
i bought an xw gt from a mate's dad in 2001 for $14,000. his wife had been nagging him to get rid of it for years. sold it in 2007 just before things went bad, for $145,000 after spending about $60k on a restoration.
complete tin-arse luck.
i also have a carton of winfield reds double cryo-vacced as an investment ( i don't smoke). it's more of a curiosity thing, they could be worth a lot if tobacco is ever banned outright.
I remember petermac33 was rabbiting on about selling everything you own to go and buy physical silver about two or thee years ago. I bought some SVL shares then. Don't even look at the value of them now - must have lost at least 75%. Eventually they will get there again - thanks Pete, good buddy!
With the Grange - they guy who said he'd buy them, I met with him yesterday, he just cleaned off the tiny stain from the top of one of the bottles and suggested I sell them at auction. Another $20 gone in petrol driving down there yesterday.
My girl Lisa. In 13years I have had 3 years off unemployed - she supported me
Got Mx bikes, road bikes, a few cars even a house at 1 point.
Then she helped last 1 1/2 years with back injury (only half pay).
She was my little financial angel, also an angel in general.
Now its my turn as she is having some time off with the new bubs.
.
I knew a guy from New Mexico that was in the Navy and with his payout after leaving in the mid eighties bought into a computer company called Microsoft.
Not sure when he sold but he never worked and sure had some serious coin to throw around.
Kinda sad really, would pull up to the bar I used to run in a $300k Merc and spend all day getting smashed.
Re Grange, Penfolds do free testing and ullage checks at 'Grange Clinic's' - not sure how you access it now though, been out of the wine game for years. I actually had a Hill of Grace replaced by Henschke not so long ago as it was corked.
