Tricky and awkward quiz – can you tell the difference between Château Latour and Chai Latour?

 A

 B

A restaurant called called Chai Latour in the outskirts of Lille has been accused by lawyers acting for Chàteau in Pauillac of potentially confusing the public by its choice of name. 

Chai Latour was established some six years ago and chai is a nice pun on chez and is run by Thierry Latour – hence the name.

Although to the uninitiated the two properties shown would appear to be rather different in size and function, there must clearly a possibility of confusion as it is likely that Château Latour is able to be able to afford to hire top lawyers irrespective of expense. It, thus, as one can expect that they have an level of intelligence that matches their hourly rate, it is surely reasonable to assume that these legal eagles do indeed find it difficult to distinguish between Thierry's establishment at 66 rue de Pérenchies, 59237 Verlinghem and the vineyard and winery of Château Latour just to the south of the town of Pauillac. 

I wonder whether dispute arises because people have been phoning up Château Latour to book a table or even turning up at the gates demanding to be fed by Thierry Latour? Here is Thierry's carte.  

Quiz
Naturally I wish to be helpful so have devised this simple but tricky quiz:

Is Château Latour A or B? Take your time! 


  

1855 ordered by Bordeaux court to pay 50 Euros a day

Château Lafite – 1855 client still awaiting six bottles of 2008

SudOuest, the regional paper for South West France, reports here that 1855 has been ordered by a Bordeaux court to pay 50€ a day from 22nd May 2012 to a client who had ordered on 4th August 2009 six bottles each of 2008 Latour and 2008 Lafite. These should have been delivered in 2011 but, as is so often the case with 1855, the client has so far not received them.

The case against 1855 was conducted by Hélène Poulou of the law firm SCP Bonnet-Laborie, 116 Cours Astride Briand, 33000 Bordeaux Tel: 05.56.31.44.65.

SudOuest also reports that the number of complaints received La brigade interrégionale d'enquête sur les vins et spiritueux (service de la DGCCRF - French Fraud Squad) continues to grow. One has to wonder when given all this evidence the DGCCRF are going to take decisive action against 1855 and its associated companies – ChateauOnline and Cave Privée?  

It is good to see court cases involving 1855 are getting exposure in the French press. However, if they covered all the court cases involving 1855 there wouldn't be space for any other news! 

For much of last week shares in 1855 were changing hands at 0.03€, although they finished the week on 0.04€ following a small late transaction that pushed the price back up to 0.04€. This morning the shares have immediately dropped back to 0.03€.

**

'Management' and leading shareholder of 1855 

Emeric Sauty de Chalon and Fabien Hyon are the senior 'management' team of 1855 (1855.com, 1855.con). Thierry Maincent was an administrateur and one of the directeur général délégués until he resigned his posts for personal reasons on 30th September 2010. Businessman Jean-Pierre Meyers, who is on the boards of L'Oréal and Nestlé, is a long-term shareholder of 1855.  Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers, the daughter of L’Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt, is also an investor in 1855. 

1855 is a probationary member of La Fevad.

      

Château Latour: a blow to 1855's business model?

Château Latour: no en primeur from 2012

The news that Château Latour will no longer sell its wines en primeur from the 2012 vintage may well be a blow to 1855's wallet thinning business model of taking (trousering) money from its clients for en primeur and then delaying delivery as long as possible and, in some instances, not at all.

Latour have announced that they will only be releasing their wines when they are ready to drink. Much will depend upon whether the other leading Bordeaux châteaux follow suit. If the whole en primeur system was to change dramatically this could well have a serious effect on 1855's already precarious cash flow. Fabien Hyon has spoken of 1855's intention to reduce the proportion its en primeur sales. This may only be an acknowledgment that there was less demand for en primeur in 2010 and that fewer and fewer people ar prepared to order en primeur through 1855.

A lawyer who is involved with a number of cases against 1855 told me recently:

'The 1855’s case is totally unbelievable. I do not know the number of legal cases against 1855.

Few months ago, there were more than 200 cases before the business court and more than 80 cases before the Civil Court and many many cases before the Tribunal d’instance.'

Equally unbelieveable is that France's Repression des Fraudes haven't stepped in and that neither the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux nor the Conseil des Grands Crus Classés have have had the courage to issue any warning against 1855's appalling business 'practices'.

**

Of course should the other leading Bordeaux châteaux follow Latour's lead it is likely to have implications for the wine investment market including stopping the 'en primeur take the money and run scam' and also perhaps for the power of some leading wine critics whose scores and reports following the annual en primeur tastings are currently eagerly awaited. 

Don't expect Latour 2011 en primeur to be cheap!

Carbon emissions

Early estimates suggest that ending the annual en primeur tasting would reduce the Bordeaux region's carbon emissions by a staggering 1.46%.

   

Luxembourg fine wine dealer scammed by fake football agent

Stolen wine includes 2008 Lafite

Anyone offered (or who has already been offered) the following wines by a private individual should be aware that they may have been part of a parcel stolen from a fine wine merchant in Luxembourg at the beginning of December 2011 by someone pretending to be the agent of a prominent Premier League footballer.

The wines are:

10 x 2006 Ausone

6 x 2007 Ausone

3 x 2005 Latour

2 x 2008 LafiteRothschild

7 x 2004 Latour

1 x 2005 Margaux

1 x 1976 Petrus

Details:

- 1 flat OWC with 6 bt CHÂTEAU AUSONE 2006 (new condition)
- 4 bt of CHÂTEAU AUSONE 2006 (new condition)
- 1 flat OWC with 6 bt CHÂTEAU AUSONE 2007 (new condition)
- 1 12 bt OWC of CHÂTEAU LATOUR 2004 with inside:
- 7 bt CHÂTEAU LATOUR 2004 (new condition)

- 3 bt CHÂTEAU LATOUR 2005 (new condition)
- 1 bt CHÂTEAU MARGAUX 2005 (new condition)
- 1 PETRUS 1976 (the label falls apart)
- 2 individual wooden-case of CHÂTEAU LAFITE-ROTHSCHILD 2008

Probable that the wines will be (or have been offered) separately. Known that the 2007 Ausone was offered and sold to a reputable UK broker, who has subsequently learned of their provenance.

More details to follow.

1855 (1855.com): Jim's Loire offers new service (cont) – Château Latour (Pauillac)

Château Latour: general view from gated entrance

La Tour lui-même

En primeurs ordered from 1855 and known to be outstanding

 6 bottles of 2005

 6 bottles of 2007

+

Les Forts de Latour

6 bottles of 2003
 

12 bottles of 2004

12 bottles of 2005

12 bottles of 2006

Emeric Sauty de Chalon and Fabien Hyon are the senior 'management' team of 1855 (1855.com, 1855.con). Thierry Maincent was an administrateur and one of the directeur général délégués until he resigned his posts for personal reasons on 30th September 2010. Businessman Jean-Pierre Meyers, who is on the boards of L'Oreal and Nestlé, is a long-term shareholder of 1855.

See explanatory post here.

Post on outstanding en primeur deliveries (408 bottles) for Château Lagrange updated to include Les Fiefs de Lagrange here.

Detail from the gates@Latour – will these grapes ripen before 1855 delivers all of its customers' en primeurs?