Estate

When someone has passed leaving behind a collection of wine and/or spirits, frequently family members are not aware if the bottles have any value. It can be helpful to have an expert come in to make a proper inventory, to ensure the wine/spirits have been stored properly, to advise on drinkability, and/or to assist with selling the collection. We can also provide the appropriate valuation as of the date of death for tax purposes.

DIVORCE

Dissolution of a marriage can be emotional and complicated. If there is a collection of wine and spirits, we can help with valuation, and allocation or sale so the assets can be managed in a fair manner. We also have experience as testifying as an expert witness in court, should a professional opinion or expertise be required.

INSURANCE

Wine is very sensitive to storage conditions, leaving it vulnerable if the cooling goes off, if a storage location floods, if it has been near a fire, or many other situations. (We once had a client whose basement was overrun by skunks.) We are heavily experienced in tasting and evaluating wine for damage, and have worked with a number of insurance companies.

To any potential client with flooding issues – please ensure the wine is removed from the location before the remediation equipment is brought in! This is unfortunately frequently overlooked, and can destroy wine that was only moderately damaged.

DONATION

Many of our clients wish to donate allocated wine or spirits to a charity or institution. We are qualified to make an appropriate determination of value and execute proper reports for the IRS, as well as sign the related tax forms. There are some restrictions to donation, so please contact us with any questions.