A Thief in Woodinville: Boycott Fortunato's

October 10, 2009

Rarely do I say anything negativito about a fellow man, let alone someone in our industry. But after repeated attempts to be paid for services provided (not to mention a bad check that bounced quite high) I must speak up about one Rudy Nieuwenhuis. For those who have gotten to know Rudy, he's a charming guy. For years he has had the wine shop/tasting room at the Country Village in Bothell, WA. It's been a regular watering hole for many wine loving fans and last year I was invited to sign books on two different occasions. I was happy to oblige.

I brought boxes of books and spent many hours at Rudy's wine shop talking to folks and happily signing books for Rudy's loyal customers. He sold the books and pocketed all the receipts per our agreement. Kathleen and I then billed him for the books sold (our share) and despite repeated attempts and gentle reminders he never paid! I went there and asked Rudy if there was a problem -- we're always happy to work out a payment arrangement for those in financial woes -- and he cut me a check for partial payment. I left there once again feeling pretty good about Rudy.

That was the check that bounced.

Rudy owes us hundreds of dollars. He won't pay and we're not counting on it. Chalk it up to dealing with a corrupt individual. Now Rudy has launched a new wine tasting room in Woodinville called Fortunato's. (Interesting name since he is Dutch). Anyway, I don't wish him the best of luck. In fact, bad business people don't deserve to survive business-wise. I, for one, will boycott this establishment and I hope you do to. No kidding.

Happy WineTrails elsewhere! Steve