A long-simmering feud in the wine world is finally headed to a San Francisco jury later this year, as three sommeliers challenge how the Court of Master Sommeliers handled a 2018 cheating scandal that rocked the industry. At the heart of the fight is the court’s decision to throw out the tasting portion of the 2018 Master Sommelier exam and strip 23 newly minted Master Sommeliers of their hard-won titles without what the plaintiffs say was a real investigation.
The plaintiffs - Gregory van Wagner, Daniel Pilkey and Peter Bothwell - argue the court’s board moved too fast when it invalidated the tasting results and rescinded the credentials of 23 candidates. A five-day jury trial is set for later this year in federal court in San Francisco, according to Reuters.
Court fight mapped in public filings
Filed in 2022, the lawsuit has already generated a thick stack of motions, orders and discovery fights, and it has survived multiple attempts to knock it out on procedural grounds. Public court filings and a tentative order describe the sides battling over how tightly discovery should be limited to the tasting portion of the 2018 exam and which internal communications the court must turn over, per Justia.
Plaintiffs: probe was cursory
The three sommeliers say the board took less than 72 hours to investigate before tossing the tasting results, a move they argue derailed careers and livelihoods almost overnight. The complaint and subsequent reporting highlight emails and other internal notes that, according to the plaintiffs, were never fully reviewed during the board’s inquiry, as reported by Reuters.
Emails, search terms and discovery disputes
Central to the discovery brawl are messages sent by Reggie Narito, a proctor who also sat on the Court of Master Sommeliers board, along with other internal records the plaintiffs say were overlooked. Judges and lawyers have already tangled over which search terms to run, which file types to include and what should be unsealed for public view. Those fights are laid out in court summaries and legal rulings on the public docket; see Casemine for a December 2023 order that addressed many of these issues.
What it could mean for sommeliers and restaurants
The complaint and related court papers note that there are fewer than 300 Master Sommeliers worldwide, which makes the credential both rare and commercially powerful in the restaurant and hospitality world, per Justia. The filings also state that affected candidates were offered refunds and a free retake of the exam. If jurors ultimately decide the organization shortchanged candidates who had already passed, the case could nudge hospitality credentialing groups toward more independent review processes, according to the public record and reporting.
Next steps
Expect the pretrial wrangling over what jurors will actually be allowed to see to heat up as discovery continues in the coming months. The five-day jury trial will test whether elite credentialing bodies can balance their internal governance with what plaintiffs say should be fair, outside-checked review. Whatever the verdict, the ruling is poised to ripple well beyond tasting rooms and wine lists.
