256: How to Spot a Fake Wine and Defining Wine Authenticity with Rebecca Gibb

How can you avoid buying a fake bottle of wine? What makes a wine truly authentic? How did Rudy Kurniawan get so far in his fraudulent schemes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars and why did it ultimately unravel?

In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with Rebecca Gibb, author of Vintage Crime: A Short History of Wine Fraud.

You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks

Giveaway

Three of you are going to be the lucky recipients of a copy of Rebecca Gibb's book, Vintage Crime: A Short History of Wine Fraud. To enter, email me at [email protected] and tell me that you’d like to win a copy. I'll choose three people randomly from those who contact me. Good luck!

Highlights

What caused the wine scandal in the 1980s, which devastated the Austrian wine scene?

How did the Austrian wine industry turn around its image and recover?

What was the story behind the famous Thomas Jefferson wine fraud scandal?

How did Rudy Kurniawan get so far in his fraudulent schemes and why did it ultimately unravel?

What makes a wine truly authentic?

How is modern technology being used to detect fraud?

Why is Don & Petie Kladstrup’s book, Wine and War, one of Rebecca’s favourites?

What is it about food and wine pairing that Rebecca doesn’t like?

Which famous person would Rebecca love to share a bottle of wine with?

Key Takeaways

Rebecca shared some great tips on how we can avoid buying a fake bottle of wine.

I found her larger discussion of what makes a wine truly authentic fascinating.

The story of Rudy Kurniawan and his fraudulent schemes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars sounds like the script of a movie or Netflix special.

Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live

Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wed at 7 pm ET on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video.

I want to hear from you! What’s your opinion of what we’re discussing? What takeaways or tips do you love most from this chat? What questions do you have that we didn’t answer?

Want to know when we go live? Add this to your calendar: https://www.addevent.com/calendar/CB262621

About Rebecca Gibb

Rebecca Gibb is an editor for the online wine publication Vinous, covering the wines of New Zealand and the Loire Valley. In addition, she owns a wine and spirit jigsaw business, Puzzle Cru. Rebecca is one of only 416 Masters of Wine in the world and was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award and the Bollinger Medal in recognition of her superb tasting ability.

To learn more, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/256.