Bottle of Hitler’s 1944 gift wine up for auction
A BOTTLE of wine Adolf Hitler gave one of his generals in 1944 is expected to fetch up to £500 at auction today.
The Fuhrerwein, which bears a picture of the dictator and a swastika, was one of many he had made each year during the war to mark his birthday on April 20 to give to Nazi top brass – despite him being teetotal.
It was the last year the Fuhrerwein was produced as the allies swept through Europe crushing the Germans. By the time of Hitler’s next birthday in 1945, he was holed up in his Berlin bunker and 10 days later he killed himself.
The bottle of red table wine was acquired by a Brit in Hungary 30 years ago. It goes on sale at Greenslade Taylor Hunt in Taunton, Somerset. Auctioneer Peter Rickman said: “This was a prestige thing for recipients. It was not a bottle to drink but keep as a trophy.
“A few have survived over the years. The wine isn’t that special.”