(Berkeleyside) - Seven disgruntled customers have filed lawsuits against Premier Cru, a high-end wine store on University Avenue in Berkeley, contending that the store purchased thousands of bottles of expensive French wine on their behalf, worth around $3 million, but never delivered it.

All of the plaintiffs in the lawsuits – many of whom live in Asia – say they paid Premier Cru to buy them “futures” of French Bordeaux (wine that is still aging in barrels and not bottled), but they have yet to see the wine. Some of the customers said they have been waiting  years for their wine. Whenever they call the store to complain, they hear a litany of excuses, they said.

“Premier Cru’s response to each inquiry … concerning the undelivered wine was essentially the same,” reads a complaint filed by attorneys for Mun Hei Li, a Hong Kong wine investor, in Alameda County Superior Court. “The wine was at a port in France waiting for shipment to China, or the wine was on board ships on their way to China. Such claims were false and Premier Cru knew they were false because the missing wine was never on its way to China,” reads the complaint.

The owner of Premier Cru, John E. Fox, said many of the disputes are the result of new customers not understanding the length of time it takes to deliver futures. However, he did admit that Premier Cru sometimes has cash-flow problems, making it difficult at times to pay suppliers as well as the customers demanding refunds.

To address this, Fox and a partner have put the store at 1011 University Ave. up for sale. Gordon Commercial is offering the property, made up of three parcels and three buildings, on the market for $7.5 million.

Speaking about the complaints outlined in the suit, Fox said: “Most of these, or all of these, are from people, mostly Asians, who are relatively new customers who are not used to the extended length of time for delivery. They are feeling insecure because they are not from the area. I think they are reacting to that insecurity and I can’t blame them for it.”

But at least two of the customers from Asia are listed as wine investors, suggesting they have more than a casual knowledge about the wine business.

In the past, some employees have just tossed out delivery dates to customers to get them off the phone, said Fox. He has put a stop to that.

Premier Cru has been in business since 1980, according to the company’s website. It started out in Oakland, relocated to Emeryville, and then, in 2011, moved into a spacious, light-filled, award-winning building on University Avenue near Tenth Street. While the store has many customers who walk through the door, much of its business is with wine collectors from around the world who read about its offering online or through its newsletters.

Premier Cru carries some of the world’s best – and most expensive – wines. For example, it is currently offering a three-liter bottle of a 2010 Mouton Rothschild for $3,615.

The wine is among vintages advertised as “pre-arrival.” Many wine collectors buy French Bordeaux while it is still aging in the barrel. It costs less then than when it is bottled. But to snare futures, collectors must pay up-front and wait a few years before delivery.

It is the length of this waiting time that is the contentious issue in the lawsuits filed against Premier Cru.