Release the Rieslings!
A star restaurateur’s $2 million wine collection is locked up in a Manhattan storage facility damaged by Hurricane Sandy, according to a new lawsuit.
Keith McNally, owner of Manhattan bistros Minetta Tavern and Morandi, “first requested, then demanded the return” of his “unique and not replaceable” collection of more than 1,500 cases of vintage wines from the West 28th Street WineCare warehouse in November, the suit says.
To date, WineCare “has failed to return the wine,” states the suit, filed yesterday in Manhattan Supreme Court.
McNally, who also owns SoHo hotspot Balthazar, took an additional $1 million hit, presumably to cover the restaurants’ demands for vino.
Morandi, McNally’s critically acclaimed West Village brassiere, offers a 1957 bottle of Barolo Cannubi for $1,200. The suit alleges that 1,600 bottles are being held hostage including Tuscany chiantis, Bollinger champagnes and Napa cabernets.
WineCare president Derek Limbocker said in an affidavit that a drainpipe burst during the storm and the facility won’t return to normal until the spring.
Another wine aficionado, real-estate bigwig Philip Waterman III, was granted access to his $300,000 collection at WineCare by a Manhattan judge last week. The inspection is scheduled to take place before the end of the month.
WineCare did not return messages.