Copia wine cellar may be for sale

5,000 bottles may be auctioned to pay bills

By JENNIFER HUFFMAN
Register Business Writer

Copia’s 5,000-bottle wine collection may be about to go up for sale.

In an effort pay a $7,000 monthly PG&E bill and other utilities, representatives of the failed center for wine, food and the arts are asking a bankruptcy judge to allow them to auction off the collection, valued at between $40,000 to $60,000.

In court documents, the attorney for Copia said the building and grounds risk decline if bills aren’t paid for electricity, security, landscaping and other expenses. They also asserted that the financial institutions in control of the 12-acre property are not doing their part.

Copia bond trustee Bank of New York and bond insurer ACA Guarantee Corporation “have been repeatedly warned” but have “declined to pay for these expenses for March, and the power is in danger of being shut off,” state documents filed by Copia attorney John MacConaghy of Sonoma.

If the building’s museum-quality HVAC system is turned off for a significant period of time, “there will be a rapid condensation problem, which will quickly degenerate into the rapid growth of toxic mold throughout the building,” he wrote.

In addition, Copia’s five acres of landscaped grounds “are beginning to deteriorate” and require watering and regular care. 

The center, which closed unexpectedly in November and filed for bankruptcy in December, also owes $120,000 in property taxes. Court documents also expressed concern about the center’s casualty and liability insurance policy, which expires May 1.

Copia is unable to pay the taxes or insurance premiums, according to court documents.

Cellar door opens

The facility hopes to sell the 5,000 bottles with the help of a wine collection consultant, Chai Consulting of San Francisco.

But in today’s economy and with Copia’s need for quick cash, it may be able to receive only 60 to 75 percent of retail prices, noted Chai’s Maureen Downey.

Global wine markets have fluctuated greatly in the past months, with collectors flooding the market, looking to convert wine to cash, Downey noted in a letter to Copia. Restaurants are replacing wine only as needed. The market for new world wines has “collapsed,” she wrote, driving prices down. “It’s a challenging market today even for sought-after wines.”

The list of Copia wines reveals an inventory of current releases from dozens of wineries, including Robert Sinskey Vineyards, Rombauer Vineyards, Beaulieu Vineyards and Opus One. The list also includes international wines from the old and new worlds, many from Napa Valley and other regions of California, as well as Washington and Oregon. The list also includes liquor such as tequila, port and cordials from Copia’s defunct restaurant, Julia’s Kitchen.

“Right now it’s a buyer’s market in the wine market,” said wine consultant Ronn Wiegand. Collectors and businesses are selling to reduce inventory and liabilities on balance sheets. “Everything is discounted compared to where it was a year ago, even the expensive wines,” Wiegand said.

Reviewing the Copia inventory, he said, “It seems like an intelligent working cellar. ... It doesn’t have $10,000 bottles or showpiece wines. I think they spent their money carefully. I saw lots of things I would like to have.”

On May 1, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Alan Jaroslovsky will rule on whether to allow the sale, pending any objections from ACA, bond trustee Bank of New York and the 20 largest unsecured Copia creditors.

Representatives for ACA and Copia representatives Joe Fischer and Joe Peatman declined comment. 

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