Reader Jim Sprague writes:
Recently at a BevMo (Beverages & More) Saturday wine tasting, I was to taste four Chardonnays they were featuring. I was very surprised at them bringing out a $10 red that was on sale at $7.99. The wine was in a bottle bag, so we had to guess what it was. To my surprise, it turned out to be a pleasant blend of Mourvedre and Syrah called Red Truck! This was a round, (full-bodied) red with enough depth that I would call it a very nice red for the price. I thought you should know.
Indeed, I believe Jim (and BevMo) is on to something. The price of California bulk wine is very low right now (even for Napa Valley appellation bulk wine it’s only about $2.50 a gallon for ready-to-bottle Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay) and that’s created a boom market for the negociant trade. A negociant is simply someone who purchases bulk wine and bottles it under a fictitious label.
These wines are generally aimed at the $10-and-under market.
“There is really some very nice wine out there at these prices,” Thrace Bromberger, co-proprietor of Napa’s Gustavo Thrace Winery and owner of a small wine shop in the city of Napa, told me last week.
Wines of this ilk are typically fruit-forward and appealing, albeit usually simple, offering plump, juicy flavors for easy and early consumption. Enjoy them while they last, for wine gluts that produce this sort of value tend to be cyclical.
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