Guerrieri v. Severini

MUSSELL, J.

This is an action for damages for breach of a contract to sell approximately 200,000 gallons of wine. Plaintiffs appeal from the judgment entered in favor of defendants and contend that the evidence does not support the trial court’s finding that there was no contract entered into between the parties wherein the defendants agreed to sell to plaintiffs and plaintiffs agreed to buy the wine involved.

Plaintiffs, copartners doing business under the firm name and style of Santa Fe Vintage Company, were engaged in the business of producing, buying, bottling and marketing wine. Defendant Phil J. Severini and his wife were the owners of the Severini Winery and Distillery. On March 27, 1953, Severini had on hand about 180,000 or 190,000 gallons of wine, after taking out the lees and shrinkage, and on that date one Fritz Kyer, a wine broker, came to him and stated that he had an offer from the Santa Fe Vintage Company to purchase his wine. In this connection Severini

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testified as follows: “He came to me, and he says, ‘I have an offer by Santa Fe Vintage Company to bny wine for them. ’ He says, ‘Let’s offer yonr wine for 36(6 a gallon.’ I says, ‘That is all right with me providing I get my money immediately.’ So he says, ‘Okay.’ He says, ‘Let’s go into the office.' So I went into the office”; that in the office he read and signed a document prepared by Kyer; that he told Kyer he wanted “cash for the entire amount immediately”; that he wanted Kyer to have Santa Fe to send a man up to gauge the tanks and give him a check for the full amount within 48 hours; that Kyer said “Okay. I will submit it to them”; that 15 minutes to half an hour later he called up Kyer and “I says, ‘Have you sent that offer in yet?’ And he says, ‘No, but I phoned it in.’ I says, ‘Well, I’m coming right down to see you.’ So I went down to see him. And I says, ‘Fritz, I’m having trouble with my wife, domestic difficulties, and it’s possible she’ll take out a restraining order on me, and being as I don’t want no trouble, why don’t we offer them my half of the wine, and let’s submit the offer that way.’ He says, ‘No, I can’t. I already phoned it in.’ I says, ‘Well if that’s the way it is, there’s nothing we can do about it. We’ll have to go through with it’ ”; that a week or so later he asked Kyer if he had heard anything and Kyer stated that he had not; that he then on April 24, 1953, through his attorney, wrote a letter to Kyer withdrawing his offer.