Gang of masked men stole £4.2m worth of red wine from Marchesi ​Antinori, Italy's largest family-run producer

Thieves stole around 30,000 bottles of red wine from a warehouse in Tuscany, an Italian winemaker has said.

CCTV showed seven masked men breaking into Marchesi ​Antinori's storage facility in Cortona last weekend, disabling ​alarms and loading cases of wine onto two trucks.

They took between 8,000 and 10,000 bottles of Solaia, one of Italy's most ​sought-after labels, as well as Tignanello and Guado ⁠al Tasso, the manufacturer said on Friday.

The wines cost from €150 (£127), ⁠but some of the rarest vintages can fetch thousands of euros per bottle.

The ​timing and execution of the theft, which was discovered on Monday ⁠morning when staff arrived for work, suggested a highly organised group was involved, the producer said.

Antinori, which dates back to 1385 and ​now exports to 170 countries, has warned customers ‌across the world to be wary of offers outside official sales channels.

Italian police are investigating and the Florence-based firm ​is still hoping to recover the stolen alcohol.

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The theft is the ‌latest in a series in Italy, following another in July at the renowned Banfi winery in Montalcino.

In the past, similar crimes have involved smaller quantities or a handful of high-value bottles from restaurants, private cellars or during distribution, but recent cases have involved larger stocks held at wineries.

The wines had been prepared to be shipped overseas, allowing the thieves to remove a large quantity of high-value bottles quickly, a representative for Antinori told ‌Reuters.

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