Desert Berry (GB) (Green Desert), the dam of this year's Derby winner Desert Crown (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), is the latest high-profile addition to the Nov., 29 Sceptre Session at the Tattersalls December Mare Sale.
The 13-year-old mare will be offered for sale carrying a full-sibling to Desert Crown by her owner Gary Robinson of Strawberry Fields Stud. The Derby winner was himself bought at Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale for 280,000gns, and his yearling half-brother from the first crop of Lanwades sire Study Of Man (Ire) will be offered as lot 435 during Book 1 this year.
“Desert Berry has been an absolute star for us,” said Robinson. “Having studied thoroughbred bloodlines all my life, breeding a Derby winner is an absolute pinnacle and I am immensely proud to have bred Desert Crown. Desert Berry is a superb individual with an impeccable breeding record and I have retained two of her daughters in whom I have great confidence.”
Along with the Derby winner, Desert Berry is also dam of the Group 3 winner Archie McKellar (GB) (Archipenko), who was renamed Flying Thunder when exported to Hong Kong. The mare has also produced another three multiple winners by Archipenko, including the six-time scorer Rose Berry (GB), who is also now in foal to Nathaniel.
A winner herself over a mile, Desert Berry is out of a Distant View half-sister to the top Juddmonte mare Binche (GB), whose offspring include the Group 1 winners Byword (GB) and Proviso (GB), and Group 2 winner Finche (GB).
“It is rare for the dam of a Derby winner to be offered for sale, and even rarer in the year of the Derby triumph,” said Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony. “Desert Crown is an outstanding Derby winner and Desert Berry will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of our inaugural Sceptre Sessions. It is a pleasure and a privilege to offer such an exceptional broodmare on behalf of Gary Robinson, and the depth and international appeal of her pedigree make her an enticing prospect for breeders from throughout the world.”
The Tattersalls December Mare Sale begins its four-day run on Monday, Nov. 28.
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