How does Fred Franzia do it?
Charles Shaw wine, a.k.a. Two-Buck Chuck, offers a range of varietals at $1.99 and is sold exclusively through Trader Joe's grocery company. Included in the line-up are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Gamay Nouveau, Valdiguie, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Charles Shaw Chardonnay won bragging rights to Best California Chardonnay at this year's California State Fair Commercial Wine Competition, winning a Double Gold Medal. (We suspect that it was served late in the queue and rated by judges who may have neglected to spit.)
We included a bottle of Charles Shaw Cabernet Sauvignon in a blind tasting of California Cabernets. Predictably, although a terrific bargain and sound cooking wine, it placed last.
Trader Joe's has now sold more than 300 million bottles of Two-Buck Chuck. The winery, Bronco Wine Company in Ceres, CA (Central Valley) controls more than 30,000 acres of vineyard property and produces around 20 million cases of wine annually. Bronco is headed by Fred Franzia, a nephew of Ernest Gallo, and is a growing operation. They are planning to expand into Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and Colombard.
"The market is going to need a lot of wine," said Fred. And he's planning to meet the need.
Franzia claims that the key to his ability to provide sound wines at such a low price lies in his total control of the operation from vineyard to bottle, although other wineries with similar abilities can't seem to compete.
Other brands offered by Bronco include Forestville, Estrella, Montpelier, Grand Cru, Silver Ridge, Rutherford Vintners, Hacienda, Fox Hollow and Napa Ridge. Bronco is now the 4th largest winery operation in the United States.
