Fabled California restaurant drained of $50,000 in wine heist

A Christmas Day break-in at the fabled Napa Valley eatery The French Laundry drained it of a small fortune in very fine wines, its chef said Wednesday. The 40-50 bottles pinched from the restaurant in Yountville, California—mostly of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti (DRC) and cult American wines Screaming Eagle—were worth more than $50,000, the restaurant said on Twitter. The Los Angeles Times, however, put the total figure lost at potentially over $300,000.

On Christmas day @_TFL_ was the victim of a robbery. Specific wines of specific value were stolen: DRC & Screaming Eagle.

The French Laundry chef Thomas Keller

Keller, one of the top chefs in the United States, helms the establishment— one of the few U.S. restaurants to receive Michelin’s coveted three-star rating—as well as East Coast outpost Per Se in New York. Napa Police Lieutenant Oscar Ortiz said the variable value of the heist depends on whether the wholesale or retail prices are tallied. The restaurant, which just marked its 20th anniversary, is one of 13 restaurants in the United States to earn the Michelin top gastronomic honor.

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