Wine Cellars Out at 100 Eleventh

The downturn has claimed its latest victims: for all but a select few residents, the private wine cellars at Jean Nouvel's shimmering 100 Eleventh Avenue have been nixed. But fear not, wine fans! Per an FT examination of the role of wine in marketing Manhattan condos, "Marketers asked Mr Nouvel to select a favourite from among half a dozen choice wines to be labeled privately for the condominium, with a label designed and signed by the architect. [They'll] present each resident with a case when they move in." Amazing. As is this: "Jean is a big wine drinker. Much of the design, in the early stages, was done meeting with him over bottles of wine, so it fitted with Jean's sensibility." Explains a lot. [FT]