Masked thieves steal wines worth R$28 million in Italy

As far as we know, there has never been such a big theft in Italy," a company representative told AFP news agency, who asked not to be identified.

The winery reported that the thieves took between 8,000 and 10,000 bottles of Solaia, one of the most coveted labels in Italy, as well as Tignanello and Guado al Tasso. Wines retail from €150, but some of the rarer vintages can fetch thousands of euros per bottle.

The theft occurred last weekend at a warehouse in central Italy where high-value wines had been prepared for export. "It's our largest warehouse, where all bottles go before they are shipped," the representative said.

Although such crimes have traditionally involved smaller quantities or a few high-value bottles – taken from restaurants, private wine cellars or during distribution – recent cases have involved large stocks stored in the wineries themselves.

Last month, 3,000 bottles of Barolo were stolen in the Piedmont region, in the north of the country. It is estimated that the total value of the wines reached a few hundred thousand euros. "Other wineries had already been the target of robberies, but ours had not," said the representative.

Florence-based Antinori said security camera footage showed seven masked men entering its warehouse in Cortona last weekend and deactivating the alarm systems before loading thousands of cases of the Tuscan red wines into two vans.

The winery said the timing and execution of the robbery – discovered on Monday morning when the team arrived at the warehouse, and which is now being investigated by Italian police – suggest the involvement of a highly organized group.

The operation was facilitated by the fact that the wines had been prepared for shipment to foreign distributors, allowing the thieves to quickly remove a large quantity of high-value bottles, an Antinori representative told Reuters news agency.

Antinori, whose history dates back to 1385 and which currently exports to 170 countries, warned customers around the world to be alert to offers outside official sales channels following the theft that occurred last weekend. The company hopes to be able to recover the wines taken.