LOSS OF WINE CARGO OFF PORTUGAL SOURS MERCHANTS' HOLIDAYS.

Byline: Mark Evans Associated Press 

Millions of bottles of wine and spirits, destined for holiday tables in the United States, were lost at sea last month when a cargo ship split in half off Portugal, according to merchants.

``What a mess,'' said Michael Aaron, chairman of New York retailer Sherry-Lehmann, which lost 1,600 cases in the wreck. ``At least the fish are going to have a nice New Year.''

Talk of the MSC Carla has been rippling through the American wine industry since the freighter was torn open Nov. 25 by a wave off the Azores.

Early reports of the amount lost make it potentially the largest wine loss at sea in history, said Dan Berger, a syndicated wine columnist, whose sources estimate that bottles worth more than $100 million sank.

While much of the wine is replaceable in a supply-heavy market, the loss forced retailers to work overtime to keep shelves stocked in the weeks before Christmas, the period that accounts for about 40 percent of wine sales annually in the United States.

``If it's not on the shelf by the 24th, you may as well forget about it,'' Berger said.

A spokesman for Mediterranean Shipping Co., the Swiss-based carrier that lost the ship, said reports of the cargo's worth have been exaggerated. Wine importers and wholesalers told a different story.

``My loss is enough to be painful, but others lost more,'' said Ed Everett, a San Francisco-based wine distributor, who was expecting a 200-case shipment of rare cognac.

Aaron said he had to replace 1,000 cases of wine from France's Bordeaux and Loire Valley regions. More distressing, he said, was the sinking of dozens of bottles of irreplaceable Armagnac of 1934, 1947 and 1957 vintages, with price tags up to $700 a bottle.

Importer Frederick Wildman & Sons reported losing at least 800 cases aboard the Carla. Boston-area wholesaler MS Walker reporting losing many cases of midpriced French, German, Spanish and Italian wines.

Also reportedly aboard were at least 1,000 cases of highly coveted 1995 red Burgundy and Bordeaux, sold on a futures market and recently fetching as much as $200 a bottle.

``This is a very tense time,'' said importer James Galtieri.

The loss ``could represent a big chunk of the wine coming into the U.S.,'' said Rich Cartiere, editor of Global Wine News, an industry newsletter. ``It puts a dent in the supply of European wines available here.''