Wine merchants must reimburse the purchase price of wines if they prove to be counterfeit. According to the news agency dpa, the Cologne Higher Regional Court came to this decision in an appeal. According to the report, a Bavarian rarity dealer had purchased 36 wines worth almost 300,000 euros from a wine shop in Cologne. Among them were several bottles of Romanée Conti from the 2004 and 2007 vintages. The Bavarian dealer resold the bottles to a wine supplier in Singapore shortly afterwards. The latter had become suspicious and returned 34 bottles. The Bavarian retailer then sued the Cologne-based trading company before the Regional Court. According to the court, the 34 bottles had been identified as forgery with the help of a special magnifying glass. Therefore, the judges at the Regional Court sentenced the Cologne wine merchant to pay the purchase price. According to dpa, the Higher Regional Court has now rejected the appeal.
(uka)