‘I Am Afraid My Wines in Storage Are Gone for Good’: Customers Say They’ve Been Stonewalled By Wine Storage Company Founded by ‘Justified’ TV Producer

A New York wine storage company, Chelsea Wine Storage, is being accused of stonewalling its customers. (Photo: Maximilian Schönherr/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

On Thursday, the New York Post reported that a New York wine storage company, Chelsea Wine Storage, has been accused of stonewalling customers, leaving many in a panic about picking up their precious wines. The business is the storage arm of Chelsea Wine Co., and according to the outlet has gone silent on the customer service front since early November.

The business, which was formerly named Chelsea Wine Vault, was founded in the 1990s by Daniel Berteluce and Donald Kurt, a TV producer who worked on the series “Justified.”

In addition to storing rare bottles for fine wine enthusiasts, CWS also worked in conjunction with some of New York’s high-profile restaurants, such as Gotham Bar and Grill. The company had storage lockers, so its clients from the culinary world could access their wines at their leisure.

The wines currently reside in an abandoned basement beneath a closed TGI Friday’s at 777 Seventh Avenue in Times Square, according to a source who shared photos with the New York Post.

“With no response, I am afraid my wines in storage are gone for good,” a customer Yelped about the business in October, the Post reported.

Some of the wines that were reported as sitting in the vacant basement include rare vintages like a 2011 Coche-Dury Meursault, a white burgundy that often fetches prices of $1,200 a bottle. The facility does not appear to be temperature-controlled, leaving customers worried their beloved bottles may be damaged.

“I cannot get them to answer emails or phone calls, and I am extremely worried about my collection… some of my most prized bottles somehow no longer appear in my inventory,” another user wrote according to The Post.

The Post claims that more brazen customers have even gone so far as to “[knock] on the door,” to get into the warehouse and retrieve their wines.

Berteluce and Kurt ended their business partnership in 2015, when Kurt filed a lawsuit and claimed that Barteluce tried to cheat him out of a loan of $330,000 for the business. The television producer claimed both businesses were poorly managed by Amelia Gancarz, Barteluce’s daughter. Eventually, the lawsuit was settled, and the business presently lists Amelia and her spouse, Michael Gancarz as the “sole owners,” of both businesses.

The storage business moved to Midtown in 2022, per the New York Post, and the store moved to 60 Ninth Ave. Court documents cite delinquent rent from both businesses.

On Saturday, the New York Post reported that a tenant in the building called the police after Michael Gancarz allegedly got into an “altercation,” with the tenant’s employee. Gancarz was accused of having a heated exchange with the employee after the employee confronted Gancarz over claims that he sealed off a common area that had access to an emergency exit and elevators.

A Series of Lawsuits and Violations — the Decline of Chelsea Wine Co.

Chelsea Wine Co. faced multiple lawsuits over unpaid rent and claims of unfairly confiscated wine collections.

One customer, Michael Moriarty, claimed his collection – with an apparent value of $200,000 — was put up for sale at Chelsea Wine Vault. CWS’s contract cites it can “dispose” of any client’s wine over delinquent storage fees, and the business claimed Moriarty owed them money.

Yet, Moriarty claimed he repeatedly tried to pay CWS as soon as he became aware of the outstanding balance. Per a lawsuit that was settled in August 2019, Moriarty claimed he was “rebuffed” by the business after multiple attempts to pay. A further development claims the alleged amount of wine CWS tried to sell from his collection exceeded the outstanding fees Moriarty owed the business.

“I don’t understand how you could sell it,” New York Judge Franc Perry said, per a transcript of the case. “If it was worth $100,000 and your bill was only $6,000, sell the amount of wine or dispose the amount of wine for $6,000 and give him his wine back.”

CWS also faced additional scrutiny for building an underground wine lounge without proper permits and claims the business owes a wine broker $184,000 with an additional 12% interest. The premium wine company’s situation seems eerily similar to the Sherry Lehman saga, which began in May of this year.

Other customers claimed CWS charged them erratic storage fees and have asked for an explanation despite receiving no response.

“Somewhere along the way, my monthly storage locker fee skyrocketed from $77/month initially (in 2015) to $277/month plus there have been massive one-time payments of thousands of dollars on top of that,” one customer claimed.

That customer cited a mysterious one-time charge for $2,498 and emailed CWS about it, sending a copy of the correspondence to the Post.

Two wine storage companies, River Valley Wine and Manhattan Wine, received emails from CWS in late November, which claimed individuals could pick up their collections, despite the fact The Post contacted the shop numerous times to hear its side of the story.

According to Louis Chisari, a lawyer for the Gancarz family, the duo claims the most recent issues stem from a staffing shortage.

The business’s landlord, Delshah Capital, is still moving forward with the lawsuit over the delinquent rent:

“Their irresponsibility is hurting a lot of people including employees who haven’t been paid, customers and their landlord,” claimed the Head of Delshah Capital, Michael Shah to The Post. “I think they are undercapitalized and completely disorganized.”

Join the Whiskey Raiders Bottle of the Month Club, where you will receive hard-to-find bottles curated by Whiskey Raiders staff with a 90+ rating on whiskeyraiders.com plus live virtual tastings. Sign up here!