Wines Named In Lawsuit Over Arsenic Levels: Case Dismissed (Update)

Updated Aug. 23, 2016 By Deb Belt and RENEE SCHIAVONE

The dismissal of a now-famous lawsuit claiming there are dangerous levels of poisonous arsenic in several types of California wines didn't make the same headlines as the original claim, but earlier this year a judge in California's Superior Court in Los Angeles dismissed the case.

The suit, which was first filed on March 19, 2015, alleged that 28 California wineries are selling wines containing unsafe levels of arsenic. However, all 83 wine labels named in the complaint remain on the shelves. No wineries issued recalls, and no retailers pulled wine from store shelves during the legal tussle.

The wineries argued in a March 23, 2016, court hearing that their labels warn about the dangers of alcohol, which met the law's requirements since there has been no government ruling that the trace levels of arsenic found in wine pose a health risk. A judge agreed that the wine companies have followed all California laws.

Megghen Driscol, a representative for defendant Treasury Wine Estates, told Wine Spectator, "we are delighted that the Los Angeles Superior Court has confirmed that the plaintiffs' claims of 'failure to warn of trace levels of arsenic in wine' have no legal merit and was, quite frankly, absurd."

The California Wine Institute called the suit "an unfounded claim that trace amounts of arsenic in wine pose a health threat to consumers."

Versions of the original Patch story keep circulating on Facebook and other social media.

Several well-known vintners are named in the suit, including Franzia, Ménage à Trois, Sutter Home, Wine Cube, Charles Shaw, Glen Ellen, Cupcake, Beringer and Vendage. Most of the wines cost less than $10 a bottle and are white or blush varietals including Moscato, Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc.

As may be expected with a case that has so many defendants, the suit is moving through the Los Angeles Superior Court system at a snail’s pace. Online court records indicate the next time it’ll be in front of a judge is for a hearing on March 21. At that point, the defense will challenge the merits of the case before a judge, who then may decide if there’s enough to the case to move forward. The defense still has not filed an answer to the complaint.

One major development in the last 11 months is that an amended complaint was filed at the end of last year. On Sept. 16, the first amended complaint added on a request for punitive damages ”...in light of Defendants’ willful and conscious disregard for the rights of Plaintiffs and the Class...,” among other things.

Court documents allege three separate testing laboratories skilled in arsenic testing each confirmed that several California wineries are producing wines with high levels of the toxin, ”in some cases, up to 500 percent or more than what is considered the maximum acceptable safe daily intake limit.”

• Read: Drink Any of These Calif. Wines? They Contain Poisonous Arsenic, Class-Action Suit Alleges

So, should you stop drinking these wines?

Back in July, Nancy Light of the Wine Institute of California told Patch that’s not necessary because the wine is safe. Furthermore, Light claimed, wine sales have not dropped as a result of the litigation.

“This lawsuit is patently false and has been largely ignored by consumers once they learned the facts,” she said.

And keep this in mind: arsenic is all around us. It’s found naturally in the air, soil, and water, which explains how it ends up in wine.

Here’s the full list of wines named in the lawsuit:

1. Acronym’s GR8RW Red Blend 2011
2. Almaden’s Heritage White Zinfandel
3. Almaden’s Heritage Moscato
4. Almaden’s Heritage White Zinfandel
5. Almaden’s Heritage Chardonnay
6. Almaden’s Mountain Burgundy
7. Almaden’s Mountain Rhine
8. Almaden’s Mountain Chablis
9. Arrow Creek’s Coastal Series Cabernet Sauvignon 2011
10. Bandit’s Pinot Grigio
11. Bandit’s Chardonnay
12. Bandit’s Cabernet Sauvignon
13. Bay Bridge’s Chardonnay
14. Beringer’s White Merlot 2011
15. Beringer’s White Zinfandel 2011
16. Beringer’s Red Moscato
17. Beringer’s Refreshingly Sweet Moscato
18. Charles Shaw White Zinfandel 2012
19. Colores del Sol’s Malbec 2010
20. Glen Ellen by Concannon’s Glen Ellen REserve Pinot Grigio 2012
21. Concannon’s Selected Vineyards Pinot Noir 2011
22. Glen Ellen by Concannon’s Glen Ellen Reserve Merlot 2010
23. Cook’s Spumante
24. Corbett Canyon’s Pinot Grigio
25. Corbett Canyon’s Cabernet Sauvignon
26. Cupcake’s Malbec 2011
27. Fetzer’s Moscato 2010
28. Fetzer’s Pinot Grigio 2011
29. Fisheye Pinot Grigio 2012
30. Flipflop’s Pinot Grigio 2012
31. Flipflop’s Moscato
32. Flipflop’s Cabernet Sauvignon
33. Foxhorn’s White Zinfandel
34. Franzia’s Vintner Select White Grenache
35. Franzia’s Vintner Select White Zinfandel
36. Franzia’s Vintner Select White Merlot
37. Franzia’s Vintner Select Burgundy
38. Hawkstone’s Cabernet Sauvignon 2011
39. HRM Rex Goliath’s Moscato
40. Korbel’s Sweet Rose Sparkling Wine
41. Korbel’s Extra Dry Sparkling Wine
42. Menage a Trois’ Pinot Grigio 2011
43. Menage a Trois’ Moscato 2010
44. Menage a Trois’ White Blend 2011
45. Menage a Trois’ Chardonnay 2011
46. Menage a Trois’ Rose 2011
47. Menage a Trois’ Cabernet Sauvignon 2010
48. Menage a Trois’ California Red Wine 2011
49. Mogen David’s Concord
50. Mogen David’s Blackberry Wine
51. Oak Leaf’s White Zinfandel
52. Pomelo’s Sauvignon Blanc 2011
53. R Collection by Raymond’s Chardonnay 2012
54. Richards Wild Irish Rose’s Red Wine
55. Seaglass’s Sauvignon Blanc 2012
56. Simply Naked’s Moscato 2011
57. Smoking Loon’s Viognier 2011
58. Sutter Home’s Sauvignon Blanc 2010
59. Sutter Home’s Gewurztraminer 2011
60. Sutter Home’s Pink Moscato
61. Sutter Home’s Pinot Grigio 2011
62. Sutter Home’s Moscato
63. Sutter Home’s Chenin Blanc 2011
64. Sutter Home’s Sweet Red 2010
65. Sutter Home’s Riesling 2011
66. Sutter Home’s White Merlot 2011
67. Sutter Home’s Merlot 2011
68. Sutter Home’s White Zinfandel 2011
69. Sutter Home’s White Zinfandel 2012
70. Sutter Home’s Zinfandel 2010
71. Trapiche’s Malbec 2012
72. Tribuno’s Sweet Vermouth
73. Vendange’s Merlot
74. Vendange’s White Zinfandel
75. Wine Cube’s Moscato
76. Wine Cube’s Pink Moscato 2011
77. Wine Cube’s Pinot Grigio 2011
78. Wine Cube’s Pinot Grigio
79. Wine Cube’s Chardonnay 2011
80. Wine Cube’s Chardonnay
81. Wine Cube’s Red Sangria
82. Wine Cube’s Sauvignon Blanc 2011
83. Wine Cube’s Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz 2011

Note: Any wines listed without specific years are non-vintage, meaning the grapes used did not come from a single year.

Credit: Patch file photo