Stock broker and convicted fraudster Bernard Madoff is "not a wine connoisseur", according to the auctioneer overseeing the sale of his cellar.

Although there examples of fine Bordeaux in the 58 lots making up Madoff's collection, little is known about how the wine was stored, according to Bloomberg.

The highlight of the sale is a 12-bottle case of 1996 Bordeaux, Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, but Kimberly Janis, director at Morrell and Company Fine Wine Auctions, says that the collection is very small for someone of Madoff's wealth.

"He actually picked out a couple of interesting Italian wines, though not many," added Bloomberg wine critic Elin McCoy.

These include six bottles of 1997 Antinori Tignanello and two bottles of 2000 Bruno Giacosa Barolo.

Madoff admitted 11 federal crimes in March 2009, after turning his wealth management business into a large Ponzi scheme.

The sale of his wine will go towards a fund to repay some of those defrauded by the scheme.