Highland Park Whisky Goes Missing in Flight
Posted Apr 19th 2008 9:02AM by Deidre Woollard
Filed under: Spirits
We've all become accustomed to the possibility that an airline might lose our luggage but the Beverly Hills-based spirits company Saybrex International is missing 186 bottles of a rare cask of 32-year-old
Highland Park whisky that it claimed had been delivered to the U.S. by Delta Airlines.
The Moodie Report says that 31 cartons are worth around $240,000 and went missing on the route between Scotland and Los Angeles. It got to the Glasgow Airport but never arrived. Various government agencies are trying to track down the missing hooch.
Tags: highland park, HighlandPark, scotch, whisky
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-20-2008 @ 3:47PM
Ari Bussel said...
Another article which appeared in the leading industry newsletter Kane's Beverage News Daily.
KANE'S BEVERAGE NEWS DAILY -- 4/17/07
Kane's Beverage News Daily
The National Beverage Daily(tm)
Volume 4, No. 72 Thursday, April 17, 2008
In Today's Issue:
* Where's the Wine? Delta Airlines Can't Say if It Was Lost or Stolen
* Supreme Court Says DWI Not a Violent Felony
* Coca-Cola 1st Period Profit Jumps 19% on 6% Rise in Volume
* Connecticut Legislature Wants Locks Off Beer Coolers
* Jackson and Biagis Form 'Concierge Level' Wine Transport, Storage Firm
* Inertia Offers Free Direct Shipping Compliance Service
* New Website Lists Free Shipping Sites
* Guest Editorial: Raising California Beer Tax a Bad Joke
Where's the Wine? Delta Airlines Can't Say if It Was Lost or Stolen
Were 31 cases of a 32-year-old cask of Highland Park Single Cask whiskey valued at $240,000 "misplaced" by Delta Airlines or were they stolen?
No one seems to know. But what Saybrex International Inc., a Beverly Hills wine and spirits company, does know is that it never received the whiskey.
The shipment originated at Edrington Group in Glasgow, Scotland on June 18, 2007, and was taken to the Glasgow Airport. It arrived at 5:20 p.m. at Delta's Glasgow Airport Cargo Terminal, was placed in storage and was constantly observed by closed-circuit television.
Delta has outsourced operation of the terminal to Servisair, which was acquired in 1999 by Penauille Group. In addition to aviation services, Penauille, a French company, is a major provider of industrial cleaning and facility management services.
The next day, it was consolidated with other shipments, sealed, netted and prepared for delivery to the Edinburgh airport for shipment to Atlanta. It was received in Edinburgh at 7:40 a.m. the next day, June 20. The pallet bore the same seal number as when it left Glasgow. Staff at Edinburgh didn't open the pallet to check the contents. We're told this is normal: If the seal is intact, it is assumed that the contents are also intact.
The pallet was loaded onboard Delta Flight DL097 for Atlanta en route to Los Angeles on June 20, 2007, according to a report by an investigator for an industry consortium in Scotland. A copy of his report was obtained by Kane's Beverage News Daily.
Federal regulations make Delta responsible for delivering the product to Customs & Border Protection for clearance.
A Luxury Toast? Or Headed for eBay?
The shipment has not arrived in Los Angeles, Ari Bussel, Saybrex's vp-operations, told us last night. A Delta spokeswoman said she wasn't aware of the matter and wouldn't have any immediate comment.
"This single cask was either left behind while in Delta's custody and control or was stolen while in Delta's possession," Bussel said.
"If the theft was done without knowledge of the true nature and value of the goods, someone may be enjoying a very unique toast, without even realizing it," Bussel said, adding:
"If, on the other hand, the goods were stolen because of it being a rare, very high value single cask bottling, the bottles may one day appear in the marketplace, either sold to specialty retailers or offered on the web."
Is Delta Stonewalling?
While the distillery and airport authorities in Scotland have "provided full and detail information" about the shipment "immediately," Delta has "attempted to bury the issue," not even filing a Manifest Discrepancy Report that's required by law, Bussel said.
Meanwhile, on Nov. 23 of last year, according to Bussel, CBP asked Delta to investigate the disappearance of the shipment, and referred the matter to Immigration & Customs Enforcement for a follow-up investigation regarding the shipment.
On March 18, 2008, Saybrex's customs broker, Frank Gomez of World Exchange, met with CBP officials and was told that "even though they never received correspondence or a response from Delta to confirm the loss," a refund check for prepaid customs dutieswould be issued. That check was received the next day by Saybrex. -- AP
Please feel free to contact us if any further details, documentation or contact information is needed.
With best regards,
Ari Bussel
Vice President Operations
Saybrex International, Inc.
(310) 777-3177
ari@saybrex.com
Fax (310) 777-3188
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