The wine merchant at the centre of France’s fake Pinot Noir scandal sold wine to Constellation Brands, it has emerged, as US authorities consider their own investigation of the fraud.
Constellation Brands confirmed today that it bought Pinot Noir wine from the Sieur d’Arques wine merchant, which was one of 12 parties convicted in France this week for selling cheap, copycat wine at Pinot Noir prices.
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Sieur d’Arques was fined EUR180,000 (US$244,000) by a court in Carcassonne this week for its part in a fraud ring that made an estimated EUR7m between 2006 and 2008.
The Languedoc-based merchant also supplied Constellation rival E&J Gallo Winery, suggesting that the world’s two largest wine firms may have fallen victim to the fraud.
“Constellation has every reason to believe that it received wine made from Pinot Noir grapes from Sieur d’ Arques during those years,” said the firm, which is the world’s largest wine group. “The wine purchased during 2006-2008 also had the required French documents describing the product as Pinot Noir and was tested internally, after the French tribunal began its hearing, and was found to contain Pinot Noir,” it said.
None of the wine bought in that time remains on the market, it said.
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By GlobalDataFrench authorities first became suspicious of the fraud during a routine audit at Sieur d’Arques, where they noticed that more Pinot Noir was being sold than had been bought in.
Constellation did not stop using Sieur d’Arques after the allegations surfaced. But, the firm said that, after it was alerted by authorities, it had the 2008 vintage tested by experts in France, before importing it.
Constellation’s statement comes as US authorities consider their own investigation into the scandal.
“We will review the final court documents when they become available and determine an appropriate course of action following our review,” a spokesperson for the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) told just-drinks last night (18 February).
The TTB has been in regular contact with French authorities on the issue, he added.
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