Iron fist hits the ...

[Gob]

A McLaren Vale wine maker says he’s ‘‘gut-wrenched, shocked and numb’’ after losing more than $1 million of his flagship shiraz when a container crashed from a forklift.



Moollydooker Wines’ 2010 Velvet Glove Shiraz sells for $185 a bottle, but now winemaker Sparky Marquis has lost a third of his production after the mishap which destroyed all but one of the 462 cases bound for the United States.

As the container hit the ground the force of 12 tonnes crushed the cartons, reducing many to a third of their normal size.

‘‘It was unbelievable, crazy. It was not what I wanted to hear,’’ Mr Marquis said today. ‘‘When they opened up the container they said it was like a murder scene.

‘‘There was red everywhere.

‘‘But it smelled phenomenal. They were really impressed with the smell.’’

The accident has put a major spanner in the works for Mollydooker’s US launch in September where demand for Velvet Glove was expected to be high. It will also impact on the availability of the wine across Australia.

‘‘It’s a massive loss. We’re going through all of the 462 cases at the moment just to see what we can save out of it,’’ Mr Marquis said. ‘‘Really, we’ve only found one carton that has survived intact, so it’s going to mean a massive shortage of the wine.’’

Mr Marquis said the only saving grace was that the wine was fully insured with assessors already on the scene. He was also grateful that no one was hurt in the accident.

‘‘So how do I feel? Gut-wrenched, shocked, numb,’’ he said. ‘‘But then you come out the other side and think, well, no one got hurt. It’s wine and a fairly big loss, but luckily we’re insured.’’

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/executive-style/s ... z1SoMv5MDG

[The Hen]

I am so glad he insured it.

[dales]

Scoop it up and sell it as a "jug wine".

[Long Run]

Gives new meaning to the wine crush. Guess our fine sippers here can wait another year to taste the best of Australia. (tpyo correction).

[Guinevere]

Oh no, how sad!

[The Hen]

His name is Sparky Marquis?

I bet all his friends call him Sparky Marky.

[loCAtek]

Caught on camera a few years ago;



Raise your glass, not your fork[lift]!