A luxury hotel owned by multi-billionaire Sir Jim “JR” Ratcliffe was targeted by thieves who made off with £67,000 of vintage wine .
The crooks raided the Lime Wood Hotel in the New Forest, Hampshire, where a bottle of Romanée-Conti grand cru pinot noir costs £10,000.
Two masked men entered at 3.40am on Sunday and stole 82 bottles.
Hampshire Constabulary urged people to be on the lookout for “high-quality wine at a bargain price”.
The five-star venue belongs to the Lime Wood Group and Home Grown Hotels, part-owned by Ratcliffe, chairman of petrochemical giant Ineos, which owns the Grangemouth refinery.
Ruthless Ratcliffe, 67 – Britain’s richest man – who once drew up plans to sack 1400 workers while relaxing on his £130million yacht – has spent £40million on the hotel’s refurbishment.
It is favoured by celebrities, including rock star Noel Gallagher , who wed Sara MacDonald at the venue in 2011, with rooms starting at £395 a night.
The hotel declined to give details of the wine swiped by the robbers, saying only that all the bottles were of “high value”.
