Honestly, you are really confusing the issue by paraphrasing their response. Post their response or don't, but people will take your "take" as the truth, and that is messed up.
Agreed. You've biasly thrown them to the wolves with extreme prejudice, without giving them a chance to make right or defend themselves.
What about all the brand new Peugeots that sat in storage for years during the bike boom? Year models were just an approximate detail back in the day. Bigger and better models were on their way. This is still true with bike shops today even. Maybe they had excess inventory of last year's model and were trying to unload them. Should they just take all the brand new and subpar last year models and melt them in to scrap? They are a business. A business who seems to be trying to make it right.
You are also opening the door in a sense. If this happens to anyone else, they can find your issue here on BF. This thread will help them to solve any future issues with Creme should the need arise.