By the late 80's the winery was in serious financial trouble and it was sold out to Franzia or Bronco (I'm not sure who exactly).īronco sold off the inventory and never really did anything with the brand name until the Trader Joe's deal, when it revived the name as a TJ specific offering.
Really he may have been one of the first "lifestyle' vinters, more interested in buying into the Napa social scene than making wine. He fell in love with Burgundy, and then for some odd reason searched all over the state and decided Calistoga was the perfect place to plant Pinot Noir and Gamay. There really was/is a Charles Shaw, and he really did make premium wine in Napa in the 1970's and 1980's. I don't drink the "juice" but hear you load and clear.
What he's done is not so different from what countless wineries do, but he has a bull's eye on his back thanks to the snobbery and bias of the Napa crowd and WS.ĪMEN. He's unpopular, but he's eating most wineries' lunches on the competitive business playing field. The fact is, there are many, many people who make exactly the same wine or follow the same principle of purchasing bulk wine, tricking it out with oak chips or some barrel, and put it into a bottle - Castle Rock is upscale Two Buck Chuck - hell, Paul Hobbs buys most of his grapes and you would be shocked to hear the list of popular, premium wineries that augment their own vineyard production with bulk wine.įred Franzia was making money while many were making Chapter 13 payments to the court. Senior citizens love the stuff and buy a lot. Franzia turned a whole lot of people into everyday drinkers. The wine industry is a business and overcapacity and excess inventory are killers in the wine business just as in other businesses. The industry faced some challenges and Fred Franzia made lemonade out of the lemons. This wine has been one of the greatest successes in California wine industry history and it wasn't from some Napa dude, hence, everyone bags on it. The vineyards are miles long they claim to save money by not having to turn the tractor round as often(!) It's a blend of bulked-out juice, grapes nobody wants and estate fruit from Modesto. What exactly is it? google it and find out, or check wikipedia. One guy hated all the Bordeaux and only liked the merlot! The third bottle turned out to be the Charles Shaw after the first two it was a breath of fresh air. The first two bottles opened were nasty thin and acidic, probably stored badly. He had six of them, and a bottle of Two Buck Chuck Merlot as a wild card. The more exclusive the club, the more likely they are to pour Two Buck Chuck.Ī friend of mine did a blind 1997 Bordeaux tasting. My wife runs several tennis teams when the teams play the home side provides refreshments. Avoid the Cabernet though, it's really nasty. It's sweet and simple, and it's far from the worst wine I've ever tasted. And it retails for $1.99 - hence the name. For some reason, Americans use "Chuck" as a nickname for people called "Charles".
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