Huge wine fraud case settled

Several years ago, my bicycling friends were delighted to discover E&J Gallo's Red Bicyclette Pinot Noir, bearing a cute label showing a rider and his dog. Unfortunately, the drinking experience was not delightful in many cases, as 20% of the 18 million bottles of fake Pinot produced by French fraudsters was sold in the U.S. under this label by an unknowing Gallo. This week, the 12 perpetrators were sentenced in a French court to petite suspended sentences and fines, in Euros, ranging from the equivalent of a modeste $2,035 to a more considérable $244,000.

In the old days, such an insult to the French wine business might have resulted in a trip to the gallows, if not the guillotine. In my opinion, they should at least be forced to drink nothing but this plonk for the rest of their lives.