Well your big problem now is that you posted on a “Real Names” website.
So a few years from now, any IRS agent [with even a modicum of curiosity] who stumbles upon this thread is going to experience an irresistible desire to pull your tax returns and see whether you declared your wine income on them.
And dittoes for any Illinois State Liquor Control Commission agents who might get to wondering whether you ever bothered to ask their permission before you started selling your stash.
What’s the deal with tax?
I’m not cognisant of US laws, but in the UK the sale of personal chattels is not taxable. If the tax authority wanted to charge tax, it would have to prove that the activities constituted a business. Even if it were able to do so, it would then open the door for all manner of costs and expenses to be set against the sales. And for something involving only a few thousand dollars, is it likely that the tax authority would initiate an investigation that would cost more than the potential recovery of tax?
Definitely taxable income on the gain when wine is sold, and at a higher rate than normally used for long term investment income.
But if the wine was recently inherited, then I believe the basis is “stepped up” to the current value so there would likely be little or no income tax on a quick sale.
Mark, do you spend most of your time going through random liquor stores in Illinois? I just remember quite a few posts from your end detailing random purchases you found in a random liquor store. You have pretty good luck!
It’s funny that you ask. Throughout the past few years I have probably visited over 150 stores in the greater Chicagoland area. My crawlspace is now stocked full of various trophy wines. As a result, I seriously need to start planning how I’m going to drink down my collection. A good friend got me into wine shortly after my 21st, and we’ve been meeting up bi-weekly for the past 4 years to blind taste each other. The next time we meet up we’re doing a 1949 Roger Louis BdB; a Champagne that is returning no search results online.
Ahhh… you haven’t answered the question of provenance. Were have these 50+ year old wines been these past decades?
Of course I have no idea what your financial circumstances are, but if these wines fell inti my lap, there is simply no way I would sell the first growths. At a bare minimum I would keep the great majority of them.
Unfortunately, I’m currently not at liberty to spill the beans on where I got them from. All I will say is that they were legally purchased at retail, and they were stored in a very cool basement, in a locked room with no light. I literally had to borrow the manager’s flashlight to find the burried treasure.
Def sell to kl wines. They won’t care that you found em in a liquor store
good to know.
Rudy had a basement and a manager? Only a fool would buy with the disclosed provenance and so long as there are fools, there be someone to sell them wine
You know, the more I weigh my options and listen to the board, the less enthused I become about the prospects of selling the wine. As a young man on a tight budget, If I let these go, I will in all likelihood never have another chance to drink the aforementioned wines. I’m also quite shocked at just how time consuming, expensive, and complicated the process of liquidating these wines is. I guess this means the board can expect some pretty epic tasting notes over the next few years.
good call! Would be awesome to taste and experience them over the years.
Is this a proper translation:
A 25 year old finds a bunch of rarities buried in the basement of a Chicagoland retailer, since no one has ever before asked at this store whether they have some good stuff not on their shelves. He uncovers these wines which he buys at a fraction of their market value. Maybe because the retailer has never heard of first growths and anyway, who would want anything soooo old??? So OP finds out that he could drive the 2 cases to an excellent local auction house that could easily sell this wine, although at a somewhat discounted price if provenance is not established beyond this too-good-to-be-true tale. OP also discovers that United States has income tax laws which are relevant even for private transaction (unlike Britain?). Now OP is somehow discouraged about cashing his windfall and we should look forward to TNs.
Ok, got it.
Peter
Peter
One of the nice things about berserkers compared to other forums is that they don’t allow flame wars, I think you should respect that regardless od the situation
Alan
One of the worst effects of Rudy/Hardy is the cynicism that now permeates wine boards whenever someone posts something like the OP.
Probably the main reason I stopped visiting the WS forums.
Why not give the guy the benefit of the doubt?
Yes, the '59 Latour is a “trophy” wine.
But a '66 Latour with no label?
I seriously doubt anyone would bother trying to sell a bogus bottle of that.
Or '47 Casa de Sonoma?
Do you really think there are fake bottles of this being cooked up in a Chicago basement?
If you spend the time looking, like this guy obviously did, there are plenty of legitimate wine finds out there.
And while a great majority of them might be long dead due to poor storage, there are still countless amazing bottles
waiting to be discovered.
I know- I do it all the time.
Give the cynicism/pessimism a break;) ![[truce.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/d/d33e712b50d5efc2425bf219c404fbdb7ed0ba50.gif "truce"){kind=small}
I think this has little to nothing to do with it. I don’t understand all this pressure about income taxes from everyone. No one knows his tax information, I don’t think anyone so far offering advice is a CPA or a tax attorney. So let’s let him do what he wants to do with the wine, who cares. I hope he enjoys every bottle whether he drinks it or sells it. none of our business.
Here is a thought.
Sell them locally if possible through CC.
With the caveat that you will open a bottle of each wine with the buyer(s). You get to experience the finds, the buyer gets some peace of mind, and of the wine is crap the deal is as well.
Congrats on the find, by the way. If it were me, and I spent what I consider to be a significant sum to get the bottles, I’d try to move a few if them to cover my cost and keep the rest. I’m sure you could move a few via pm or commerce corner.
for me, the provenance is not really clear. Maybe these bottles were there their whole lives, but maybe only the last decade. I hope the price you paid reflects the risk. Either way, good luck!
Bingo.