From being body checked at a La Paulee tasting to responding to detailed questions from noted wine counterfeiter Hardy Rodenstock, Maureen Downey, CEO of Chai Consulting, tells us about the long road to becoming one of the world’s leading experts in wine fraud.  Maureen gives us insight into the global world of wine fraud, what’s being counterfeited now, and how she’s pioneering methods to authenticate wine with The Chai Vault.  A must-listen for anybody interested in collecting or investing in wine!  Detailed Show Notes: Maureen started in wine auctions in 2000Learned about counterfeit wines from a counterfeiter - Hardy Rodenstock asked for a lot of details about bottles that were being sold in auctionRudy Kurniawan case - helped track counterfeit bottles, worked with the FBI, and worked with a group of international wine fraud expertsCounterfeit wine market - it’s in the Billions per year, vast majority sold privately, by brokers, retailers, NOT the auction market b/c auctions are the most visible source of counterfeitsEstimates 20% of all wine sold is counterfeit - supported by Interpol, consistent with other high-end productsLots of IP infringement, low-end wine fraud (e.g., Rose in the South of France)Modern trend - counterfeit current, recent production winesMost counterfeits come out of Europe (hot spots: Switzerland, Italy, France, & Belgium)AsiaHigh-end buyers in Asia assume something is counterfeit until proven realFlooded with fakes from the US when markets first opened upMainland China - high import taxes leads to the use of “coyotes” (import smugglers) for old and rare wines, and have little recourse for counterfeitsHard to know what old wines taste like - even some wine critics tasting notes may be based on counterfeit wines made by Hardy Rodenstock and Rudy KurniawanMain methods of counterfeitingDigitally printed, current production winesCan re-fill real bottles of wineSassicaia counterfeit ring was recently broken up - they got proprietary glass, capsules and made excellent copiesThere is a big need to track the supply chain to identify and prevent fraudTips for getting real wine as a consumerMakes sure retailer has not had problems in the pastGet to know the people at the wine merchantAsk questions and demand answersGet to know a consultant and have someone vet the wine first, not afterLatest information on wine fraud found on Wine Berserkers and winefraud.comSystems producers use to protect against fraudProoftag - this is mostly cosmetic, can be digitally printed, and needs proximity to the bottleThe Chai VaultWines input into blockchain secured system, can be accessed anywhere in the world -> helps with supply chain trackingHas an NFC chip underneath capsule that can get read; for secondary market wines, puts a PVC overlay over capsule which cannot be read if the capsule is pierced2nd generation of NFC chip coming out Jan 2021- very low failure rate, better antenna for longer rangeCosts - $8,500 for bottling line additions + pennies per bottle (starting point, costs more money to add transfer of ownership and other features)Authentication adds ~20-30% to the value of wine (based on Domaine direct auction sales) Get access to library episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.