Famed Authenticator Maureen Downey to Launch Wine Fraud Website

Wine expert and authenticator Maureen Downey, who helped bring down the now infamous wine forger Rudy Kurniawan, is launching a new website to help combat wine fraud on a larger scale. WineFraud.com, which is due to launch in March 2015, will provide information for businesses, collectors and average enthusiasts looking to protect themselves by becoming more enlightened on the subject.

Subscriptions to the site will be available on a tiered basis dependent on one’s level of involvement in the wine industry, and users will have access to a host of comprehensive information, reports Wine-Searcher.com. Downey is very cautious, however, about how specific these resources are, so as not to encourage would-be fraudsters. In addition, after a thorough vetting process, vendor members will be given a logo to recognize that they are committed to fighting counterfeit wines and are up to date on the matter of fraud. And membership will be expensive, Downey warns. Such is the cost of security. [Wine-Searcher] [Photo: Flickr/Ivan Fourie]