Pennsylvania wants to dump 2,447 bottles of wine

Christina Turley’s father, Larry, produces California wine from vines that date back to the late 1800s. Sought by collectors, several bottles may be dumped down a Philadelphia sink.

Pennsylvania plans to destroy 2,447 bottles seized from Arthur Goldman, a Philadelphia-area lawyer who was charged this year with illegally reselling wine. While he has agreed to penalties, he’s fighting the jettisoning of his collection, which encompasses small-batch California producers such as Turley Wine Cellars, Martinelli Winery and Kistler Vineyards.

For the authorities, destruction is the natural culmination of the case. For Christina Turley and Regina Martinelli, a fifth-generation winemaker, it would waste the products of years of devotion and passion.

“It represents a huge amount of work, a huge amount of effort and affection,” Turley, sales and marketing director at Turley Wine Cellars, said by telephone. “We see these wines as extensions of ourselves. It would be a shame to see them poured down the drain.”


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