Gallo Winery buys Edna Valley Vineyards

I have mixed emotions about this sale.

#1 Edna Valley Vineyard has always been one of my favorite Central Coast wineries [Pinot Noir, specifically] and I always loved the family atmosphere in the tasting room.

#2 Living in the San Joaquin Valley where Gallo Winery is based, I am more than a little bit concerned about a large corporation buying a small winery...especially one with Gallo's reputation for low-end wines.

#3 Let's be honest here, aside from an attempt at making high-end wine, Gallo specializes mostly in jug-style wines, brandy and sweet blends. Are they buying credibility?

Should I be worried?

Your thoughts...


Source: http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/06/29/244 ... alley.html

Well, obviously you're already worried or you wouldn't have posted, so why are you asking?

I'll address your point #3:

I think it's incorrect to shrug off Gallo's movement from the synthetic.cheap jug and cheap brandy side of the biz to the fine wine segment as an "attempt" I'd say they succeeded, and succeeded pretty darn well at that. Their competitors sure seem to think so, as do the customers who buy wine. The Gallo of your youth has changed. Yes, they still do jug wines, but they first moved up to Sonoma and heavily invested resources into getting into better wines and did so well...by anyone's estimation. Then they pursued the estate wine market, and also did that quite well. Finally, they pursued a global approach by allying with, investing in, and buying, variably, wineries with good reputations at different levels in different places, all to occupy a niche or category slot.

Martin Codax Albarino? Anyone want to argue it's not good quality? Their New Zealand winery?

Like or dislike Gallo, Admire or be repulsed by their history and their business strategies (which, truth to be told, aren't all that different from many other companies). But don't ignore their successes. They may be good for Edna Valley Vineyards, or not. They may indeed go in and plonk it down. Or they may decide to invest and improve. And ask yourself this: why did EVV sell anyway? Either the owners wanted to cash in (or cash out), or they were forced to sell because they couldn't sustain the operation any longer. Cold hard facts: this is a tough business to be successful in long term. Like it or not, Gallo has figured out how to be successful.

[James Roscoe]

Well played Hoke. I thought we were past the Gallo makes only cheap jug wine mentality.

Well, obviously you're already worried or you wouldn't have posted, so why are you asking?

I'll address your point #3:

I think it's incorrect to shrug off Gallo's movement from the synthetic.cheap jug and cheap brandy side of the biz to the fine wine segment as an "attempt" I'd say they succeeded, and succeeded pretty darn well at that. Their competitors sure seem to think so, as do the customers who buy wine. The Gallo of your youth has changed. Yes, they still do jug wines, but they first moved up to Sonoma and heavily invested resources into getting into better wines and did so well...by anyone's estimation. Then they pursued the estate wine market, and also did that quite well. Finally, they pursued a global approach by allying with, investing in, and buying, variably, wineries with good reputations at different levels in different places, all to occupy a niche or category slot.

Martin Codax Albarino? Anyone want to argue it's not good quality? Their New Zealand winery?

Like or dislike Gallo, Admire or be repulsed by their history and their business strategies (which, truth to be told, aren't all that different from many other companies). But don't ignore their successes. They may be good for Edna Valley Vineyards, or not. They may indeed go in and plonk it down. Or they may decide to invest and improve. And ask yourself this: why did EVV sell anyway? Either the owners wanted to cash in (or cash out), or they were forced to sell because they couldn't sustain the operation any longer. Cold hard facts: this is a tough business to be successful in long term. Like it or not, Gallo has figured out how to be successful.

From what I can gather, Edna Valley was being held in a trust. This would suggest a loss of financial control of some sort. So a sale might have been necessary to retain solvency.

TBH, for my palate [and I have visited the Sonoma operation and purchased the "new" Gallo wine] I wasn't terribly impressed. Maybe it was the visions of Thunderbird and Night Train Express still in my memory which tainted my view, I won't speculate. But the Cabernet I bought was, well, average.

I am also aware that they bought Barefoot Winery in 2005, and to be fair, their Pinot Grigio is very approachable. Many like Mirassou wines as well [I do not]; another Gallo [2003] purchase. But their past still haunts the Gallo lable like the spector of their white port.

The purchase of a small batch winery like Edna Valley gives me great cause for concern. Other Central Coast wineries like York Mountain Winery, Estrella River Winery and a few others have been purchased by large corporate wine makers and to the certain demise of quality in favor of quantity or worse, production wine.

And I get your point about Gallo's formula for success in a business sense. I just don't like that success to be fueled through profit by acquisition. Because in the end, we wine lovers lose one more small winery to corporate wine making technology.

Well played Hoke. I thought we were past the Gallo makes only cheap jug wine mentality.

Not if you live in California....the store shelves are filled with it.

Gallo of Sonoma makes a number of single vyd wines for about forty bucks. I'm not really familiar with them so I can't say how good they are. But at least they're trying. LOL

Of course, that has nothing to do with any plans Gallo may have to make changes at Edna Vly. At least they'll have money behind them now!

Wasn't there a point (several years ago) when Robert Mondavi had a substantial interest in Edna Valley Vineyards?

Gallo of Sonoma makes a number of single vyd wines for about forty bucks. I'm not really familiar with them so I can't say how good they are. But at least they're trying. LOL

Of course, that has nothing to do with any plans Gallo may have to make changes at Edna Vly. At least they'll have money behind them now!

The single vyd are good wines, not great but good. I'm happy when they are served, better than some others in the same price range.

Wasn't there a point (several years ago) when Robert Mondavi had a substantial interest in Edna Valley Vineyards?

TBH, I'm not sure.

This is what the Los Angeles Times had to say: "Edna Valley Vineyard was originally a project of Paragon Vineyard Co., which planted the first grapevines in the 1970s. In 1980, Chalone Wine Group joined in a partnership to form the actual winery. Chalone's share was bought by wine conglomerate Diageo in 2005. Now Gallo is buying out both partners."

So, unless Mondavi was a part of either group, maybe not.

Source: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dailydi ... yards.html

Here’s an interesting article.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/06/30 ... ts-in.html

Salute

So...you're okay with Diageo, but critical of Gallo? Hmm.

Given the choices, I'd think the reverse.

Yes, it was the Chalone group (and later Diageo) which owned Edna Valley. After a bit of searching, Byron was the SB vineyard that was owned by Mondavi.

So...you're okay with Diageo, but critical of Gallo? Hmm.

Given the choices, I'd think the reverse.

Ay...there's the rub.

Diageo owned and well crafted/beautifully made Beaulieu Vineyard, Sterling Vineyards, and Chalone Vineyard wines [IMHO] are not in the least comparable to Gallo's extensive list of skid row wines.

Night Train Express, White Port, Thunderbird top the list of bum wines along with Carlo Rossi and Boone's Farm among many other cheap, low-end wines and are how the Gallo family made their millions. Only MD 20/20 out shines the Gallo repertoire of bum wines.

I would be OK with Gallo if they stopped making this sh-, er, stuff. But they continue to pump it out by the metric ton.

Their only hope for redemption it seems is to buy credibility with the purchase of quality wine making operations like Edna Valley.

That, my friend, is why I have a problem with Gallo.

So...you're okay with Diageo, but critical of Gallo? Hmm.

Given the choices, I'd think the reverse.

Ay...there's the rub.

Diageo owned and well crafted/beautifully made Beaulieu Vineyard, Sterling Vineyards, and Chalone Vineyard wines [IMHO] are not in the least comparable to Gallo's extensive list of skid row wines.

Night Train Express, White Port, Thunderbird top the list of bum wines along with Carlo Rossi and Boone's Farm among many other cheap, low-end wines and are how the Gallo family made their millions. Only MD 20/20 out shines the Gallo repertoire of bum wines.

I would be OK with Gallo if they stopped making this sh-, er, stuff. But they continue to pump it out by the metric ton.

Their only hope for redemption it seems is to buy credibility with the purchase of quality wine making operations like Edna Valley.

That, my friend, is why I have a problem with Gallo.

You're putting up a false argument, Tim.

The comparisons you choose to make (Boone's Farm against Beaulieu?), and the products you choose not to compare, are indicative of your inability to look with unjaundiced perspective at these two companies, Tim. That's fair---you've made it abundantly clear that your prejudices against Gallo go back to your youth, and you're not about to let go of them.

Mind you, I'm not really defending Gallo here---they are what they are. But neither would I wish to be in a position of defending Diageo.

And, sorry, but if I wished to do so, I could pick apart the Diageo brands you mentioned and question their stewardship of them. It would also be possible to put apples against apples and pick credible Gallo Sonoma wines that could match up to the brands you name. Chalone? Have you actually tasted the entry level Chalone wines lately? Sterling? You really think they've improved under Diageo?

But it's become obvious that all you really want to do here is use the pulpit to rant against Gallo. So I'll bow out. Go ahead, Rant.

So...you're okay with Diageo, but critical of Gallo? Hmm.

Given the choices, I'd think the reverse.

Ay...there's the rub.

Diageo owned and well crafted/beautifully made Beaulieu Vineyard, Sterling Vineyards, and Chalone Vineyard wines [IMHO] are not in the least comparable to Gallo's extensive list of skid row wines.

Night Train Express, White Port, Thunderbird top the list of bum wines along with Carlo Rossi and Boone's Farm among many other cheap, low-end wines and are how the Gallo family made their millions. Only MD 20/20 out shines the Gallo repertoire of bum wines.

I would be OK with Gallo if they stopped making this sh-, er, stuff. But they continue to pump it out by the metric ton.

Their only hope for redemption it seems is to buy credibility with the purchase of quality wine making operations like Edna Valley.

That, my friend, is why I have a problem with Gallo.

You're putting up a false argument, Tim.

The comparisons you choose to make (Boone's Farm against Beaulieu?), and the products you choose not to compare, are indicative of your inability to look with unjaundiced perspective at these two companies, Tim. That's fair---you've made it abundantly clear that your prejudices against Gallo go back to your youth, and you're not about to let go of them.

Mind you, I'm not really defending Gallo here---they are what they are. But neither would I wish to be in a position of defending Diageo.

And, sorry, but if I wished to do so, I could pick apart the Diageo brands you mentioned and question their stewardship of them. It would also be possible to put apples against apples and pick credible Gallo Sonoma wines that could match up to the brands you name. Chalone? Have you actually tasted the entry level Chalone wines lately? Sterling? You really think they've improved under Diageo?

But it's become obvious that all you really want to do here is use the pulpit to rant against Gallo. So I'll bow out. Go ahead, Rant.

I'm sorry you feel that way, but if you can show me where Diageo produces skid row style wines I will be happy to say we have an apples to apples comparison here. I was unable to find such a comparison.

These are not images from my chilhood, Hoke. As a public educator in an area innudated with these Gallo products, I have seen firsthand the damage they cause to families and children. My wife teaches in a tough part of town replete with gangs, broken homes and addiction. Gallo's products play a major role in ruining those lives as well.

So, before you judge me too harshly, my friend, my disdain for Gallo runs far deeper than a memory from the past.

Here’s an interesting article.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/06/30 ... ts-in.html

Salute

I hope the locals are right [though Clay Thompson's comment was just a little too optimistic, IMHO], but the comment which followed the article and bemoans the loss of family wineries to mega-corporations is also my concern.

So, I guess we wait and see.