Premier Cru Fine Wines

Just read the news. I bought wine from them for a few years early 2000s. They ALWAYS seemed sketchy. Everything was pre-​arrival (even wines that had been released a decade earlier), virtually everything grey market. I gave up after too many cooked wines and slow deliveries. I hope Mr. Fox serves prison time.

It is a BIG FRAUD!!!
I’ve never received any wine!

Double WOW! I just Googled Premier Cru and Ponzi scheme just for the heck of it. Boing! CNBC reporting just yesterday that FBI is investigating PC as a potential Ponzi! Pretty darn hard for a retailer to have $ 7M in assets and $ 70M in liabilities when selling a product with increasingly strong demand and rising prices. Hopefully Bernie Madoff had some unfulfilled orders with PC!
I remember visiting Berkeley from Oregon several years ago and walking by the old PC store on Piedmont only to see it had apparently recently been destroyed by fire. I wondered aloud to my wife if the fire might not have been related to an insurance fraud related to «cooked» books and inventory irregularities. Just speculating, mind you.

IMPORTANT!!!
Just received notification that Premier Cru has filed Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. All of us waiting for deliveries are out of luck. Monies are lost. GAME OVER.

Adding to what many other have written, the FBI has opened an investigation. It is important that affected customers file official complaints. It won’t help recover money but may provide satisfaction in other ways.

i still can’t believe there are a few customers «defending» this awful retailer. Wake up — the place just filed for bankruptcy because of its deceitful practices.
I wish the government could go after the owners, John Fox and Hector Ortega, for their personal assets — who scammed over $ 70M of wine from customers! Should be a crime that they aren’t thrown in jail and their personal assets taken!

PREMIER CRU FILES CHAPTER 7 BANKRUPTCY PETITION
At 3:30 this afternoon, Friday, January 8, John Fox announced to the remaining Premier Cru staff that Premier Cru had filed a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition. The staff were given a couple of hours to completely remove their belongings and vacate the building.

On January 8, 2016 Premier Cru filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, meaning a trustee will liquidate all assets of this business. Premier Cru is over. End of story. Expect lurid details and criminal prosecutions to soon follow.
Of interest, assets are listed on the bankruptcy petition as $ 7 million, but liabilities are tallied at more than $ 70 million.
This is a crazy ratio of assets to liabilities! Where did the missing $ 63 million go?
It remains to be proven in court, but these numbers suggest that Premier Cru has long been a criminal enterprise engaging in massive fraud.
Customers with outstanding orders who thought they were going to be getting fine wine at low prices will be lucky to get back a dime for every dollar. What a pity! In wine, as elsewhere in life, what seems too good to be true usually is.

Finally got thru on ¹²⁄₈ after unanswered emails and full voicemailboxes throughout the company. Philip said they could cut me a check in 3 – 4 weeks because «it’s a small one» confirms these guys have no liquidity. A promised email with the new «expected delivery dates”(this after several earlier promises turned out to be inaccurate) never arrived. A «business» that no longer accepts incoming calls-​even to the sales extention is no longer a business
While I wanted my wine I pointed out that participating in fraud by aiding and abetting the process by allaying customers concerns via knowingly false promises is likely criminal activity.
A lot of wishful thinking here. For all those who are happy to have gotten their wine after an extended wait I have some advice for you:
That’s how a Ponzi scheme works: people get their statements and withdrawals and all looks fine. until it doesnt. Theories that have been put out here trying to explain PC business model about time value of money, efficiency of shipping mechanisms and currency arbitrage are remarkably naïve and unsophisticated and show a total misundersatanding of finance and the economics of shipping. Great prices that are too good to be true? Well, there are not true.
A funny note re the value of the tapestries on the wall: $ 4,000 or $ 40.00 on pre-​arrival!
This is a classic run the bank.
Its clear from all the posts here and on winebeserker that they have been taking the $$ in and NOT buying wine on the other side. If the $$ leave the business and sales slow down it becomes unsustainable. There are no more sales memos being sent. hence the end is nigh.
I wonder how most of the employees can wind up being unknowing participants. If I were an emplyee Id seek out and cooperate w the authorities immediately
I suspect the prosecution of this crime will begin soon.
Im sorry for all thise with significant losses

FRAUD, FRAUD, FRAUD
Be very careful and think twice before even engaging in business with these guys. 1) Ordered a pre-​release Bordeaux in late 2014. At time of ordering was told could take upto a year before the 2012 Mouton’s were shipped. I was fine with the timeline. The issue dealing with this vendor came about after inquiring about the purchase made in Dec of 2015 (approx. 1 year from purchase) Emailed them several time and to multiple email ID’s as shown on their website. Till now I am yet to hear back from their team. Furthermore the speculation grew after I read this article online regarding other customers who were also frauded from their purchase (s):
a)
b) Vendor never returns emails regarding inquiries of purchase made
c) Finally contacted my credit card company today to file a fradulent charge.
Never again.

after countless attempts to collect, i finally received a refund check from PC. It bounced 2 days later. Looks like this is the end for them.

I wonder if I should cringe, or spit whatever is in my mouth for now for the awesome reviews below claiming they are not in the trade and has bought for over 20+ years.
Did you realize that the shop has shutdown for good and they are transitioning to a web only model, and pickups are by appointment only just a couple of days ago?
I am confident and do believe some of you have got your wines, but I can bet the entire city of San Francisco it’s not one of the coveted 09 Bdx’s that many here has complained about.
Don’t quote me — check this forum out for yourselves. Even the strongest defenders have stepped down in the latest wake of refunds, disallowance of using store credit, etc.:
And guess what, I went to the store nearly a month ago and guess what they have on the shelves? Dust and emptiness. It felt like a liquidation has started, meanwhile the parking lot at the back had a nice blue Corvette ZR-​1 and nothing but laughter from the owner (s) or partner (s) upstairs, away from the staff on the first floor.
So, what do you want to tell us now?

This is as regards an order placed in 2011 for 2009 Bordeaux. About 180 bottles of Pontet Canet. Given all these posts in the last 6 months, relieved when I picked it up yesterday intact. Yes they are still in business as of yesterday, yes they delivered this order in full.
I have another similar order placed in 2012. Am concerned, but have some hope it will all work out given that they seem to want to work through the current difficulties.
John Fox et al in management there — stop taking money out for your personal pleasure when there isn’t enough to place all the orders and place your customer orders as your absolute #1 priority. Nothing you are buying could possibly be as important as your reputation and the survival of your business. You have many employees and customers counting on you, and I hope you will man up to meet all your obligations. You should be the last person paid, after all wine has been ordered and all your employees and other costs paid. With 30 years plus of experience under your belt, it’s hard to understand how you don’t get this. I had a small business that struggled for 15 years but toughed it out with little or no pay until a turnaround was fully accomplished. I hope you all make it, for my own sake, and for the sake of the many good people depending on you.

Through the years and despite my better judgement, I have purchased top-​rated wines at release from Premier Cru.
The price is ALWAYS the lowest on the Internet, and as prior experience proves, will be delivered in the future. Problem here is two-​fold:
First, the «estimated delivery» date is nowhere near reality.
Second, they continue to provide these silly, unrealistic dates! If it’s going to be two years — says so. Not — this fall — when, in the case of 09 Bordeaux, proved to be the fall two years later!
Now waiting for Penfolds Grange. Already past estimated delivery (6 – 9 months). My most recent inquiry got «anywhere from 6 – 24 months. Not sure from when that starts.
Sheesh. Pay the extra money and go elsewhere

I am one of the lucky ones.
My «in stock» order back in November 2013 of two cases was delivered promptly. Good prices. My «pre-​order» of another case (pretty high end stuff) at the same time… not so much. I made several phone calls in 2014 when I was told wine would be arriving…“not here yet, …Spring 2015″. I then started reading these Unilocal reports and figured I had be Ponzied. I stayed calm,…worked with the staff that agreed the wines were likely not arriving soon. I got credit for these wines, bought «in stock» wines (two cases of 2010 Brunellos), and figured myself lucky when the boxes arrived last week. My suggestion is to not fall in love with your original order, and work with them to get «good enough» alternatives that are in stock.
With regard to those who state they are not concerned about not getting prompt delivery («I won’t be drinking this for several years anyway»), I would rather have wines delivered on time and know it is safe in my climate controlled cellar, and not worry that it is baking somewhere else.

While once a long time ago they may have delivered (eventually) wines at good prices, they now seem more like a scam outfit, accepting your money for «pre-​arrivals» and then failing to deliver, spinning tales of failed shippers, customs issues and whatever other fairy tale they think will successfully string you along while your money earns them interest. After 5 – 10 years when these lies become tougher to get away with they will offer you your money back (Hah!) or more likely try to get you to accept some inferior trade. On the off chance they actually source your prestigious wine that you got at a bargain price (double hah!) you are left uncertain of the wine’s true provenance and might have had better luck buying cooked wines at auction.

My numerous request for a refund went completely ignored for a long time. I was finally able to get my full refund of 6k+ last summer recently after the New York Times wrote an Expose.
Also, I just read that there are multiple large lawsuits against them and that they are putting up for sale their Berkeley store to help meet cash flows…
Do not take my word for it… Please google «NYT premier cru» and «sued premier cru»

I have bought some wines now from a year ago to now. After finally having some concerns, I have requested a refund and told them to void the 15% cancellation fee. After all, I am cancelling because of their reputation. I have been talking to Tony which is nice but you can feel the bs a bit here and there. They were supposed to mail me a refund check last week. NOTHING. I called Tony right away, He told me I will receive the check within another 10 days. Then I said NO, You mail the check now (today). He sent me an email saying the check has been mailed. As of now 8÷18÷15 (a week later) nothing. We are more than ready to file a small claim court or more with the appropriate court which here 2120 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
Berkeley, California 94 704.
I emailed Tony, If I do not have my check. We will file on Wednesday.
STAY AWAY from THEM
UPDATE
As of today, I have not received my refund which is 7 $$$. We are filling documents with the appropriate court TODAY.

Any 5 star review here must be an employee. I am on the long list of people waiting for my wine to come in. It has now been 2 years. They always say they have «a large shipment coming in 6 months». I am just making sure this message gets back up at the top of their review list as it should be.
Please do not support this businesses scam practices. Stay away from this store. They use illegally gained money from «future» sales to run their business. These are orders they obviously have no intention of filling.

Great prices, but takes forever to get the wine. Can someone from the store please let me know the status of my wines.
Story in today’s NY Times