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‘Marilyn Monroe Naked’ Among Wines Lost in Fire — What Punishment Fits This Crime?
I’m normally opposed to the death penalty – makes it kinda hard to go back and fix mistakes – but I’m willing to make exceptions.
Oh, you say it doesn’t work that way?
Well, let’s brainstorm some appropriate punishment for the person or persons who intentionally torched $100 million worth of wine in that warehouse in Vallejo, Ca. on Oct. 12.
Investigators say the fire was deliberately set, according to
the San Francisco Chronicle. So someone knowingly torched fellow human beings’ livelihoods, destroying entire stocks and vintages of current release wines and older vintages that were being carefully (or so the wine producers thought) preserved for future enjoyment. Dozens of wineries were affected, including Saintsbury, Sean Thackrey, Viader and many more.
Saintsbury reportedly lost an entire library of wines dating back 25 years.
Some of the wines destroyed were collectors’ items, including the Velvet Collection Napa Valley Red Wine that “Uncorked� wrote about Sept. 30, 2005 that has the “peel and peek� label of a nude Monroe posing against a red velvet backdrop in a famous 1949 photograph. According to the Sacramento Bee, the warehouse fire may have incinerated as much as 80 percent of the 2002 and 2003 stocks.
I don’t think Marilyn would have wanted to be cremated like this.
David Schildknecht, the wine guru who works for Mason, Ohio-based Vintner Select, which distributes some of the wines lost in the fire, passed this information along through local VS rep Todd Nikolai:
A couple of our prestige suppliers, Long Meadow Ranch and Paras Vineyard report that they anticipate total loss of their stocks. No proprietors have been allowed into the Vallejo facility to inspect but they have been given to expect the worst. We have not heard further word from Sean Thackrey nor from other affected wineries with whom we work, as they are surely in both a state of shock and in their Cabernet harvest. Paras Vineyard’s situation is sadly typical. Much of their stock of 2001 was still in storage and their 2003 wine had recently been bottled and delivered to storage. They will thus lose nearly three entire vintages before starting over with 2004. Many wineries may not be in a position to afford this kind of starting over.
The more details that emerge, the sadder and more tawdry it gets.
What punishment would fit this crime?
Cheers …
Mark Fisher
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Comments
By jens
November 1, 2005 8:29 PM | Link to this
Tom Wark at “Fermantation” has an update on the fire with photos and a link to a newspaper article about a possible suspect. Some wineries will be lost with this calamity.
By cathy
October 24, 2005 3:46 PM | Link to this
Suitable punishment for the arson of the wine warehouse? Make them drink Bud Lite till they burst? Make them do hard labor in the vineyards? No, they would probably sabotage that as well… I do hope they find the people responsible, but I doubt any modern punishment will be adequate.
By mel
October 24, 2005 3:14 PM | Link to this
Cynthia is correct. Rogar will sell you the parts. I ordered a new screw assembly several years ago. A note of caution when you undo the screws to replace the part be CAREFUL nothing is connected by bolts screws etc it just all meshes together and will fall apart into a chinese jigsaw puzzle and it a b***h to get back together. One of the parts had a pin inserted that had to be removed to install the new part and I had a hell of a time removing the pin. My neighbor had to use a square nail to drive it out. What should have been a ten minute task if properly designed took over an hour to get back together.
By Paul
October 24, 2005 3:12 PM | Link to this
What Punishment Fits This Crime? How about drowning in “cooked” wine!!!
By cynthia3
October 23, 2005 11:41 AM | Link to this
What wine was it that you were trying to open at 9:44 in the AM??…. There is a warranty on those estate wine pullers, best bet would be to contact Rogar (which is most likely the brand) directly and see what they can do for you.
By Cynthia
October 22, 2005 9:44 AM | Link to this
Anyone out there know where I can go to have my estate wine puller fixed? The handle jammed and I don’t want to force it. Fortunately it jammed BEFORE I put a bottle in it! Thanks!
By Cynthia
October 22, 2005 9:40 AM | Link to this
I remember “Earthquake” wine from several years back. So many wineries had damage to their storage tanks during a big quake that they had to pool their grapes in various stages of development, and made Earthquake wine! They even donated the proceeds to the relief effort. Maybe something good will come out of this tragedy too, although it’s hard to imagine what that might be!