Robin Hutson offers 'generous reward' for information on wine theft
Lime Wood hotel chairman and chief executive Robin Hutson has said there will be a "generous reward" for information that assists in an investigation into the theft of 80 bottles of wine with a book value of about £65,000 from the hotel's cellar last week.
Thieves broke into the cellar of the five-red-AA-star hotel just outside Lyndhurst, Hampshire in the early hours of Monday 11 November.
Hutson tweeted: "Someone knows who is involved in this theft, there is a generous reward for info that nails these thieves."
Among those taken were a bottle each of Romanee Conti Grand Cru 1997 and 1998, a bottle of Screaming Eagle 2001, a Sassicaia Imperial 2001 and a Sassicaia Double Magnum 2004.
The 33-bedroom hotel was opened in 2009, on behalf of its billionaire owner Jim Ratcliffe, founder of chemicals company Ineos. The hotel's wine list has won many awards since its opening, including Tattinger Wine List of the Year 2015 and 2016, as well Most Innovative and Exciting Wine List at the Conde Nast Johansens Awards 2016 and 2017.
A spokesperson for Hampshire Police said: "If you are offered any high-quality wine at a bargain price or if you have any information about this theft, please call 101 and quote crime number 44190405894."
