Hyde Park winemaking shop closes

Dozens of customers of an East Hyde Park winemaking shop are looking for answers after the shop closed without warning.

Inside are valuable bottles of wine, and hundreds of dollars in customer deposits.

"They Never Called"

Lauren Dick looked though the window into Tino Vino, a that is now sealed up tight as a bottle of good vintage.

She, and dozens of other people, paid big money for wine making classes at the shop, which gave them the ingredients and instructions to make their own wine.  Lauren did just that, plunking down $250.

Lauren told me "we came in, started making it, and they said they would call us after each step was done, but they never did."

So when she went back to check the status of her wine, she, and several other customers who contacted 9 News, found the shop locked up tight, an eviction notice on the front door. And she had no luck online or by phone.

Lauren said "I went to their website, it was down, and their voice mail was all full."

Where is the Owner?

We attempted to locate Lindsey Valintino, one of the co-owners, but were told she recently moved. The building's owner tells 9 News he legally cannot give out any of the wine inside, even if it has already been paid for.

Lauren, like other customers, just wants answers, and a refund. She said "I don't even want the wine anymore, I just want my money back!"

We contacted the Ohio Department of Liquor Control. They tell us no one but the liquor permit holder can distribute the wine, so customers cannot access their wine, or downpayments.

We learned that some customers who paid by credit card are getting the charges reversed, one reason why it's always a good idea to put deposits on credit cards, not debit cards.

As always, don't waste your money.

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