Step-by-step: The alleged Reimers/Torick/Langtry conspiracy as described in amended court papers

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Previous court filings reported by Wine Industry Insight (links below) contained relatively non-specific and often incomplete details about the case.

 

• June 24, 2021: Were smoke-impacted grapes & wine laundered? Lake County Court Battle Highlights Taint Ambiguities & Winery-Grower Tension
• June 18 2021: Grape insurance fraud allegations, smoke taint damages to oak tanks, and the perils of handshake deals play out in Lake County courtroom
• September 15, 2021: Judge Allows Langtry Farms to File Amended Complaint Against Reimers & Stine, refuses to release stored wine.

 

This follow-up article is based on the more specific details contained in the Amended Aomplaint filed Sept. 22 by Langtry/Guenoc Wine Inc.

 

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Langtry Farms LLC has filed a First Amended Complaint (premium link) in Lake County Superior Court against Torick Farms LLC, its managing partner Hugh Reimers, and his alleged co-conspirator Eric Stine. The amended complaint asks for Declaratory Judgment on wine storage charges, and also alleges:

 

• Fraud,
• Negligence,
• Intentional Interference with Economic Advantage,
• Negligent Interference with Economic Advantage,
• Breach of Contract,
• Unfair Competition,
• Breach of Fiduciary Duty,
• Breach of Duty of Loyalty,
• Conversion.

$3.5 million in unlicensed wine sales; Langtry asks 3X that in damages

The Langtry complaint also charges Reimers and Stine with "unlicensed sales of wine, reaping more than $3,500,000 in illegal proceeds," and asks for three times that amount in punitive damages.

 

A substantial part of the filing describes a purported scheme between Reimers and Stine (who had been a Langtry executive during the time of the alleged scheme).

 

Readers should keep in mind that the issues described in the complaint are charges that remain to be litigated and have not yet been decided by the court.

 

Editorial Note:

• Indented text presented in dark red type, represent direct quotes from the Amended Complaint.
• Any black text interspersed in the red quotes has been added to avoid confusion.
• Paragraph spacing has been added to improve readability.
• The order of some paragraphs from the complaint has been edited in an attempt to present the text in chronological order for better comprehension.

The Parties

Plaintiff Langtry Farms (GWI) -- the successor to Guenoc Winery Inc. (GWI) -- is a bonded winery and grape grower in Lake County. It also serves as a custom crush facility. GWI was dissolved Dec. 28, 2020 and its operations absorbed by Langtry Farms.

 

Defendant Torick Farms is a California LLC managed by Hugh Reimers.

 

Defendant Hugh Reimers, is a Sonoma County resident who has served as a c-suite level executive with Foley Family Wines and Jackson Family wines.

 

Defendant Eric Stine, is a Lake County resident who was hired by GWI in July 2020 at a salary of $6,250 per month and served as its Vice President of Winemaking and Operations.

"Defendants Stine and Reimers worked together for several years at Foley Family Wines, where Stine reported to Reimers who served as the President of Foley Family Wines. Subject to the instructions of his supervisors, Defendant Stine had control over and responsibility for all winemaking operations at the GWI winery."

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• Alleged plot began two months after GWI hired Stine

• Selling wine from smoke tainted grapes

• Reimers & Stine form "joint venture"

• Stine was "inside man" who made the events possible

• Millions of dollars projected from Reimers/Stine "joint venture"

• Stine struggled to pay his share of agreement

• Alleged Insurance Fraud  #1: Langtry smoke-tainted grapes

• Alleged Insurance Fraud #2: Krasilsa smoke-tainted grapes

•  The "Sham" transaction

• Hide & Seek With Langtry/GWI: The Yokayo Gambit, Part 1

• Laundering smoke Tainted wine, Lokayo Gambit, Part 2

Premium Subscribers can go directly to the premium version by logging in Here:

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Not a Wine Executive News subscriber?

 Subscribe to Wine Executive News now, and get the rest of this original article along with everything else on the site every day, including original documents, spreadsheets,and source materials for just $29.99 per month or $209 per year

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