‘Gang des grands crus’ faces trial over €2.5m theft of 4,000 fine wine bottles

Twelve defendants are appearing in Bordeaux over a series of cellar raids targeting France’s most prestigious wines. The proceedings unfold in a year already marked by major wine-related crimes documented by the drinks business.

French prosecutors have requested heavy prison sentences for members of the so-called “gang des grands crus,” accused of stealing and trafficking thousands of bottles of fine wine from Bordeaux and Burgundy between 2019 and 2020, according to Vinetur. Twelve defendants are now before the Bordeaux appeals court after years of procedural delays.

The principal suspect, a 34-year-old man from Gironde with around twenty prior convictions, is alleged to have orchestrated the theft of more than 4,000 bottles from thirteen cellars and warehouses in the Bordeaux area. Investigators say the total value of the stolen wine exceeds €2.5 million and report that wiretaps and recovered bottles tie him closely to the operation.

High stakes

Prosecutors have sought at least eight years in prison for another man suspected of involvement in eight burglaries, and three years, half suspended, for a third alleged thief. A 60-year-old Chinese restaurateur identified as the main fence could face six years in prison and a €25,000 fine. Other defendants face sentences ranging from a year in prison to two years suspended.

The wines involved include Château d’Yquem, Lafite Rothschild, Angélus, Petrus, Château Margaux and Cheval Blanc, along with Romanée Conti from Burgundy. Rare whisky was also seized during the investigation.

According to Vinetur, police began dismantling the network in late 2020. In 2021 authorities uncovered a distribution ring said to be selling the stolen bottles to wholesalers and restaurants in the Paris region, many of them run by Chinese merchants.

Procedural complications

An earlier trial scheduled for April 2023 was postponed after irregularities in the judge’s referral order. Defence lawyers now argue their clients’ rights have been compromised because there has been no first instance judgment on the substance of the case, leaving them without the ability to appeal. France’s highest court has yet to issue a decision.

Despite the legal complexities, the trial has drawn intense interest due to the rarity and value of the wines involved. Producers and collectors across France and abroad are watching closely for the verdict.

A year of high-profile wine crime

The case adds to what the drinks business recently identified as an unprecedented run of wine-related criminal activity in 2025. As reported on 1 December in the “db wine crime files 2025,” growers, retailers and restaurants have faced billions of pounds in losses from fraud, theft and cyber-attacks.

Incidents have ranged from sophisticated counterfeit operations, where organised gangs spent half a million dollars on digital printers capable of replicating authentic labels, to a London pedicab driver who transported £31,000 of stolen wine in a wheelie bin attached to his tuk tuk. Other cases include a fatal shooting at a luxury Napa resort and jail time for a French winemaker who carbonated still wine and sold it as Champagne.

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