A sophisticated wine investment scam has left dozens of UK investors — many of them retired wine collectors — out of pocket and emotionally devastated.
The fraudulent scheme, centered around prestigious Bordeaux wines such as Château Mouton Rothschild, promised clients that their consultants would only earn money once the wines were sold at a profit. In reality, it was an elaborate ruse.
How the Scheme Worked
The investment company grossly inflated the purchase price of fine wines, sometimes by more than 400%, making resale virtually impossible. This ensured that investors had no realistic path to profit, while their funds continued to flow into the company’s accounts.
Although most of the wine did physically exist — stored in bonded warehouses — some clients never received their bottles at all. In many cases, the excessive markups meant the wines were effectively unsellable in the secondary market.
According to Decanter magazine, over GBP 37 million passed through the company’s accounts in just ten years, and individual losses sometimes reached hundreds of thousands of pounds.
The Convictions
Following a detailed investigation by Hertfordshire County Council, three people have been convicted of commercial fraud:
- Ben Cazaly — founder of Imperial Wines of London Ltd. (later renamed Imperial Wine & Spirits Merchant Ltd.), the mastermind behind the operation.
- Greg Assemakis
- Dominic D’Sa
The company, which has since closed, portrayed itself as a legitimate, family-run fine wine investment firm with offices in London, Paris, and Hong Kong, and claimed to have personal suppliers in Bordeaux châteaux.
Deceptive Sales Tactics
Investigators uncovered a web of manipulation techniques used to win investor trust:
- Sending glossy brochures that falsely used Daily Telegraph and Financial Times logos.
- Hosting lunches and dinners in luxury settings, with investors chauffeured in high-end taxis.
- Using false names in communications, with inspiration drawn from The Wolf of Wall Street.
During a 2018 raid on the company’s offices in Groveland Court, London, Trading Standards officers found evidence that underscored the culture of deceit:
- A wall sign reading “no means yes”.
- Call scripts, commission sheets, and customer complaint letters.
- The book Wine for Dummies.
- Recordings of phone conversations used to lure investors.
A Complex Wine Fraud
Authorities described the case as one of the more complex wine frauds in recent years. In total, 41 victims lost GBP 6 million through the scam. Many were elderly and had invested substantial portions of their savings.
Trish Burls, Chair of the National Trading Standards Tri Regional Investigations Team, commented:
“The scammers exploited people’s passion and enthusiasm to invest, while also depriving them of much of their life savings and causing significant emotional distress. I hope this conviction provides some comfort to the victims and families involved.”
With the convictions secured, the case serves as a stark reminder to investors to thoroughly vet wine investment opportunities — no matter how prestigious the label.
Source: WineNews