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2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/1/2008 5:24:00 AM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline 		Here's something I never ran into before. I purchased a bottle of 2004 Latour at a "Pennsylvania Wine and Spirit" shop (alcohol is a state monopoly here), came home, removed all the tissue wrapper to see the whole bottle and: the label says 2003! Thought I'd won the lottery for a moment. Anyway, I'm sure it's really a 2004 because the metal wrapper says 2004 and the small label on the back of the bottle also says 2004.

My question is: Is this like stamps whereby such an oddity is worth more? Or because of the potential confusion (at least until the metal wrapper is removed so you'd see the cork) is it worth less? Or does this have no effect whatsoever on the state of things?

Ya gotta laugh

Tom
Post #: 1
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/1/2008 5:29:38 AM   
Colonel Lawrence

 

Posts: 2093
Joined: 4/24/2006
From: Arabia
Status: offline 		Hope you get as much as the Inverted Jenny.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_Jenny

Just love to see the cork wouldn't you.
Why not ask the Chateau?

L.

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First they came for ....................

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Post #: 2
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/1/2008 5:33:19 AM   
Colonel Lawrence

 

Posts: 2093
Joined: 4/24/2006
From: Arabia
Status: offline 		Guess you should consider it being a fake, although forgers are not usually that stupid.
And why pass off a 2003 as a 2004??
http://rockssandfruit.blogspot.com/2007/10/great-new-website-for-wine-fakes.html


_____________________________

First they came for ....................

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Post #: 3
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/1/2008 9:15:36 AM   
Pavie Princess

 

Posts: 263
Joined: 5/19/2008
From: The Big Easy, New Orleans
Status: online 		I would go back and buy every bottle.  Moreover, I then I would call Latour and ask them what is up.  The reason is that Latour now does all bottling and labeling in house.  A mistake like this will make your wine so valuable but you must back it up with a note from the Chateau.  If you you cant afford the rest let me know.  I would love to take some with your help and I will contact the Chateau myself.   If the bottle is a fake according to Latour get it in writing and the store will have to refund you and :Latour will want the bottles back to investigate.  Trust me I have been throught this before with Firsts.  The chateau's will try to help with that story.

I love things like this.

Great story.

< Message edited by Pavie Princess -- 6/1/2008 8:22:14 PM >

(in reply to Colonel Lawrence)
Post #: 4
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/1/2008 11:36:50 AM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline
quote:

Just love to see the cork wouldn't you.
Why not ask the Chateau?

L.


If only I were Superman and could see through metal ...

I'm glad you saw this - was thinking of you as I wrote. Funny you mentioned writing to the château, I thought the same thing and will let you know what they say. If there's more than one they're probably aware of it.

I considered it being a fake but that just seems so unlikely - Pennsylvania is one of the largest wine purchasers in the United States and you'd think that when they don't purchase directly from châteaux they would from only highly reputable middlemen. Then again, stranger things have happened. Maybe Latour numbers bottles or has some sort of control for this.

Will keep you posted!

Tom

(in reply to Colonel Lawrence)
Post #: 5
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 4:47:40 AM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline 		To Both Col. Lawrence and Pavie Princess,

Thanks for your comments.

I emailed Simone Favreau from Latour in French yesterday and she emailed me back this morning, apologized for the error and says that I should ship the bottle back to them at their expense so they can re-label it. (I sent them 3 pictures of all the labels on the bottle.) I thought she'd be more conversational about it but she was short, direct and to the point. Maybe it's not that unusual, lol.

So now I don't know what to do. Could this really be more valuable as-is? I have no idea. And I don't know who to contact who would know this kind of thing. I wonder if Eric would? Or Christie's or Sotheby's or ...?

There are no more bottles left of the 04 - I checked yesterday at the store where I bought it to make sure and even went around to a few other stores. I checked their inventory online and there is no more 04. No 03 is available through them either, for that matter. Not that that's relevant, but anyway.

Argh.

Any ideas?

Tom








quote:

I would go back and buy every bottle.  Moreover, I then I would call Latour and ask them what is up.  The reason is that Latour now does all bottling and labeling in house.  A mistake like this will make your wine so valuable but you must back it up with a note from the Chateau.  If you you cant afford the rest let me know.  I would love to take some with your help and I will contact the Chateau myself.   If the bottle is a fake according to Latour get it in writing and the store will have to refund you and :Latour will want the bottles back to investigate.  Trust me I have been throught this before with Firsts.  The chateau's will try to help with that story.

I love things like this.

Great story.

(in reply to Pavie Princess)
Post #: 6
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 7:31:45 AM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline 		Update. I called Acker, Merrill & Condit the wine store and auction people in NYC since I know them and I talked to Jason.

He says that at some later date it *could* become more valuable as a mis-label. It would depend on how many there are like it out there - I wonder if Latour would tell me if they knew -- and he described a possible scenario in the future: someone wants to do a Latour vertical, somehow hears that there were x-number of 2004s front-labeled as 2003s and wants to include that in it just to be complete.

It doesn't sound all that likely, does it, lol.

Well, I will hold on to it and probably end up drinking and enjoying it at some point in the distant future. I'll email Simone Favereau and tell her thank you but no and at the same time ask if she knows how many there were. Hah. In the meantime, I guess I can think of it as a lottery ticket with an unknown jackpot.

So much for the Inverted Jenny!

Tom







(in reply to ctc)
Post #: 7
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 7:44:18 AM   
cgrimes

 

Posts: 906
Joined: 10/8/2007
From: Massachusetts
Status: offline 		This has all been very fascinating.  If it is not a fake, it was certainly a major screw-up on the part of the chateau, considering the price differential between the '03 and '04 vintages.

(in reply to ctc)
Post #: 8
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 3:24:32 PM   
Pavie Princess

 

Posts: 263
Joined: 5/19/2008
From: The Big Easy, New Orleans
Status: online 		There is no way I would return it.  I would ask the Chateau for a note validating it though.

(in reply to cgrimes)
Post #: 9
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 3:45:38 PM   
cgrimes

 

Posts: 906
Joined: 10/8/2007
From: Massachusetts
Status: offline 		PP,
Just a curiosity.  How can you ask a chateau to validate it without them actually inspecting the bottle?
Craig

(in reply to Pavie Princess)
Post #: 10
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 5:03:09 PM   
Pavie Princess

 

Posts: 263
Joined: 5/19/2008
From: The Big Easy, New Orleans
Status: online 		you send a letter certified from the retailer and they can trace the bottle back to verify where it came from.  This is a very new vintage.  It would be easy to do.  My bet is that they dont want this on the market at all.

(in reply to cgrimes)
Post #: 11
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 7:14:17 PM   
Serge Birbrair

 

Posts: 1524
Joined: 4/23/2006
From: Boca Raton, Florida
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: cgrimes

PP,
Just a curiosity.  How can you ask a chateau to validate it without them actually inspecting the bottle?
Craig


oh puhhleeze, the use of logic should be prohibited on the internet chat boards. Only troublemakers use it to piss others off!

Chateau, Parker and Wine Spectator night crew manager can validate any bottle with their eyes closed.

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(in reply to cgrimes)
Post #: 12
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 7:19:08 PM   
Serge Birbrair

 

Posts: 1524
Joined: 4/23/2006
From: Boca Raton, Florida
Status: offline 		Have anybody considered calling the Police

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(in reply to Serge Birbrair)
Post #: 13
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/2/2008 7:39:50 PM   
cgrimes

 

Posts: 906
Joined: 10/8/2007
From: Massachusetts
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Serge Birbrair

oh puhhleeze, the use of logic should be prohibited on the internet chat boards. Only troublemakers use it to piss others off!


Great to see you back, Serge.  This forum was lacking irreverence while you were touring Finger Lakes wineries and the big apple.

Well, then, if logic should be prohibited, I think he should open the bottle, drink 1 glass then another because he is having a hard time "figuring out" whether it is a fake or not, recork it then return it to the shop to say it is spoiled.  Then he'll get a new bottle of Latour after having 2 free glasses. 

And by the way, how were the cumplings?


< Message edited by cgrimes -- 6/2/2008 7:40:24 PM >

(in reply to Serge Birbrair)
Post #: 14
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/3/2008 1:20:19 AM   
Serge Birbrair

 

Posts: 1524
Joined: 4/23/2006
From: Boca Raton, Florida
Status: offline 		cg, this is an interesting bottle from the collector's point of view and I'd keep it for 25 years, as this is a great conversation piece.

I have a bottle of White Burg with label saying 375 ML of 750 ML bottle. I'll drink them all except last one for this exact reason.

We are still in NYC and will stay here 'til Sunday, if you have a chace visiting Finger Lakes - this will be the time well spent for the whole family.

Cumplings.....the place is on it's last leg, as I found out, their rent was increased sky high and I doubt they will make it there
:(

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Do you really think you understand terroir!? -

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Post #: 15
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/3/2008 2:17:40 PM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline 		Thought I'd update you guys even if it's no news: Still no reply from Simone Favreau /Pierre-Henri Chabot re/how many bottles came through like that.

As far as verification without having the actual bottle, I did send them photos and they "apologized for the error" ... which probably means they were aware of it. (?)

Maybe an email tomorrow or maybe not, lol.

Tom

(in reply to ctc)
Post #: 16
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/3/2008 3:24:23 PM   
Serge Birbrair

 

Posts: 1524
Joined: 4/23/2006
From: Boca Raton, Florida
Status: offline 		Tom, thank you for the update,
I read this thread like Agatha Christie , Sherlock Holmes and Starsky and Hutch book combined.

You think you will just remove the foil one day and find out what cork is in the bottle?

I hope this won't happen in the next 10-15 years and we can keep on guessing. If you keep this bottle for 50-60 years and F Audouse will still be around, he might take interest and help to remove the foil and pronounce in front of the reporters...
"It's ALIVE!!!!"....if this is 2003, indeed
:)




_____________________________

Do you really think you understand terroir!? -

(in reply to ctc)
Post #: 17
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/4/2008 11:27:38 AM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline 		Serge,

Boy, it felt like an Agatha Christie for a moment! Still no word from Latour on how many bottles are like this which means they're not going to answer that question.

So. I guess I'll keep the thing as-is for 10 years or so and if I haven't heard anything about mislabeled Latour bottles being worth a small fortune will end up drinking it then. (But I think I'll make a phone call to Acker, Merrill first, just to be sure, lol)

And it has to be an 04. There wouldn't have been 04 labels around yet when they were bottling the 03s.

Tom



quote:

Tom, thank you for the update,
I read this thread like Agatha Christie , Sherlock Holmes and Starsky and Hutch book combined.

You think you will just remove the foil one day and find out what cork is in the bottle?

I hope this won't happen in the next 10-15 years and we can keep on guessing. If you keep this bottle for 50-60 years and F Audouse will still be around, he might take interest and help to remove the foil and pronounce in front of the reporters...
"It's ALIVE!!!!"....if this is 2003, indeed
:)


(in reply to Serge Birbrair)
Post #: 18
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/4/2008 1:24:57 PM   
Serge Birbrair

 

Posts: 1524
Joined: 4/23/2006
From: Boca Raton, Florida
Status: offline 		ctc, I am growing old and stupid, of course, no '04 labels in '03, this is quite obvious now when you pointed it out.

Keep this for years, great conversation piece and one day you fool your friends who will think they drink '03 and give it appropriate praises
:)

_____________________________

Do you really think you understand terroir!? -

(in reply to ctc)
Post #: 19
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/5/2008 1:59:36 PM   
ctc

 

Posts: 22
Joined: 3/17/2006
From: Harrisburg, PA
Status: offline 		You? Old and stupid? Nah. I'm the one with the "Day Clock" hanging on the kitchen wall -- all it does is tell what the day is and sometimes I forget it's there and ask someone.

Latour is not going to say how many bottles were mislabled. They're probably consulting their lawyers, lol. j/k


(in reply to Serge Birbrair)
Post #: 20
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/5/2008 6:45:23 PM   
deb293

 

Posts: 294
Joined: 8/24/2005
Status: offline 		“It is of the highest importance in the art of detection to be able to recognise out of a number of facts which are incidental and which are vital.... I would call your attention to the curious incident of the dog in the night-time.”
“The dog did nothing in the night-time.”
“That was the curious incident.”

(in reply to Serge Birbrair)
Post #: 21
RE: 2004 Latour with 2003 Label - 6/5/2008 11:03:52 PM   
Colonel Lawrence

 

Posts: 2093
Joined: 4/24/2006
From: Arabia
Status: offline 		Highly rec. the book -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Curious_Incident_of_the_Dog_in_the_Night-time
Very readable, enjoyable ...............................
L.

_____________________________

First they came for ....................

(in reply to deb293)
Post #: 22
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