By James Atkinson
New South Wales Police are appealing for information following the theft of half a million dollars worth of South Australian wine.
Today's police appeal comes a few weeks after WineWorks Australia, which handles logistics and warehousing for the wine industry, publicly announced the theft, which allegedly took place over the Australia Day long weekend.
It's believed the private label wine was taken from shipping containers that were being stored on Pine Road, Smithfield in Sydney's west.
WineWorks Australia general manager Kent Brown last month said the theft "affected up to a dozen McLaren Vale Wineries including some leading South Australian producers".
Among them are Shingleback Wine, which produced the Stumpy Merlot 2010 featured in images released by police.
Two of the other missing wines that were stolen were destined for sale by Sydney retailer Kemenys under its own Hidden Label and Devils Ridge brands.
Merrylands Crime Manager, Detective Inspector Adam Phillips, appealed to anyone who may have been approached about buying the wine to come forward.
"This is wine which is not widely sold at bottle shops and pubs," he said.
"We are confident that whoever has possession of the wine will try to sell it and we urge anyone who may have been approached to buy wine in bulk should contact police immediately."
Anyone with information about the incident should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or use the Crime Stoppers online reporting page.