Wedding Wine Scam

Cellar Rats (ITB)
1

I got the email for the “getting married in Thailand and want to order your wine scam” yesterday from one “Kathleen Petretta.” The email (and follow up emails) were reasonably well written and convincing and assured payment by credit card before any wine was transferred. A good friend (thanks JJ) remembered that this was going around awhile ago and told me to investigate further. Sure 'nuff I found an article about this scam and the scam email quoted in the article was word for word identical to the one I had received. I pasted the email from the article in an email to “Kathleen” and asked “her” to explain. I received a very amusing email back in broken English (I suppose she could no longer follow a script) expressing her astonishment at the similarities between the two emails and that she would be heartbroken if she did not have our wine at her wedding.

Fortunately this was caught early before we spent alot of time or lost any wine.

Posted here as a reminder/warning to others.

Dave
ITB Calicaro Wine

2

Dear David- We recently had your wine somewhere and want to order some. A lot in fact. Like a few pallets worth. I promise the credit card I’ll use is good, even though it is from an offshore bank that doesnt exist. Let me know when we can pick it up. It will make our special day even more special. Thanks.

3

I am in custom packaging for consumer products and even I get emails like this. Someone wants to place a big order using a credit card. The key is the credit card always comes up very early in the conversation and they are overseas. Huge red flags.

4

In our case it was to be 14 cases of wine - 7 each of two different Pinot Noirs. With the assurance it was a domestic credit card.

5

Just go ahead and charge their credit card and ship it to my address. I’ll make sure they get it.

6

Occasionally, they screw up and send one that says they tried “my” wine and want to buy X number of cases. I don’t make wine. So, to make it interesting, we reply asking which wine they wanted: Hammered dog shit Red, Urinal aged white or our signature wine, 100% Merlot Franc called Dude. Sometimes they even pick one. We like to get the credit card number from them so we can notify the intended victim.

7

Randy: quit infringing on my trade names.

8

Points please?

9

All 100 of course!

10

[welldone.gif]

11

Chris- so who is she? And where is a larger photo?

12

I’m not Chris, but even without spending last night at a Holiday Inn Express I recognize Padma.

Larger photo (may be considered NSFW by somw, hence a link instead of in-line post): http://static.tvfanatic.com/images/gallery/padma-lakshmi-naked.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

13

Wow. Stunning. As an admirer of beauty in all its many forms (note the dodge around all gender identification issues) I can only say thanks for that link. This thread can now begin its rapid descent to God only knows what depths of depravity.
[thankyou.gif] [swoon.gif]

14

Dave, in case you were still wondering, she is the host of Top Chef on the Bravo Channel.

I am glad you didn’t get hosed on the vino my friend!

15

Yeah Scott…know who she is- didn’t recognize her in the little avatar on my lil’ old computer screen at the office(and with her clothes off). Does she look that good on Top Chef? have only seen that maybe one time- generally don’t watch much of the reality TV stuff but can make an exception in this case!

Dave
ITB Calicaro

16

Yeah Scott- kinda lucky to dodge that one. And for our tiny production 14 cases would ahve been a severe blow.

Come by Northampton tonight- there will be some good stuff getting opened. Jesse is coming and us and no doubt the usual suspects too.

Dave
ITB Calicaro

17

You are welcome Dave. I see Randy posted here. He’s the one who alerted me to it in the first place! Glad it all worked out

18

Thanks again JJ! And honored to be the subject of your first post at WB!

Dave
ITB Calicaro

19

Scott- Good times at NH last night- I opened a bottle of 05 Siduri Rosella’s and Jesse had an 06 Tantara Dierberg among other things, already open when we got there. Good fun crowd too.