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The 2009 Bordeaux vintage is shaping up as a "must have" vintage. Most are
saying on par, or better than 2000 & 2005.
Our primary supplier for Bordeaux was The Chateau & Estates Wine Company,
originally a part of Seagram's, and now a part of the Diageo conglomerate.
We have enjoyed a 30+ year relationship with Chateau & Estates, and sadly
that is coming to an end as they are exiting the Bordeaux wine market. Great
people, financially sound and we paid them AFTER we received the wine.
The vast majority of Bordeaux futures relies on the payment of money up
front for delivery a couple years down the road. Make no mistake, there are
many brokers/importers that have been/are extremely reliable. However the
idea of handing over literally millions of dollars of money that does not
belong to us and then sitting and hoping that we'll see the wines is, in my
opinion, an unacceptable risk. "It's worse than being a cat's tail in a room
full of rocking chairs!"
Having just been through the most challenging economic times that most of us
will ever see in our lifetimes, we will not pay for any wine until we
receive that wine. If this keeps us out of the 2009 Bordeaux arena, we can
exit that arena knowing that no customer has ever lost any money dealing
with Pop's, and they never will!
We will, however, seek out suppliers that are willing to accept an LC,
(Letter of Credit). An LC will allow us to enter the Bordeaux marketplace
with a financial instrument backed by our bank, HSBC USA. That guarantees
payment upon delivery of our wines. We will offer 2009 Bordeaux only under
those circumstances,
Please feel free to advise us of your interests. There will be no
obligation, and there will be no charge to your credit card. If we secure
the wines, and we fund a letter of credit, only then will we ask for
payment.
Nick Poulos
President
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