Interview, Part 2: Trinchero President And CEO Bob Torkelson

In the second part of our interview, Trinchero Family Estates president and CEO Bob Torkelson discusses the higher end of the California winemaker’s range, its import and spirits brands, tariffs, the evolving route to market, and the 16-million-case family-owned company’s vision for the future.

SND: How are efforts at the higher end of the portfolio?

Torkelson: We hold about a 5% share of the wine business here in North America. When you look at our on-premise business, certainly it’s much lower than that. And it’s also much lower in the $25-plus category. That’s where we want to put our efforts, and we have to build the infrastructure to be able to do that.

We have a partnership for a new brand with David Abreu, whose vineyards are arguably the highest quality fruit sources in Napa Valley. It’s exciting because it makes us more relevant in that luxury space and in DTC, which are two big areas for us to be able to expand our business. We also have a little brand called Quattro Theory, which is our Napa by-the-glass play and is making inroads.

SND: How is the import side of the business faring?

Torkelson: In that regard, whether it’s the Ceretto family or the Cotarella family, or Marilisa Allegrini and her work with San Polo, or the Tasca family from Sicily, we’re building a little portfolio of some higher quality wines that will make us relevant in those Michelin three-star restaurants where there’s a more discerning customer looking for different choices.

SND: How are you addressing the tariff issue?

Torkelson: Something like Bieler rosé, for instance, has a faster turnover, so price can be impacted faster than on, say, Barolo, where you have a couple of years to work through inventory. Avissi Prosecco is another hot brand that we import, and that’s another area where there’s going to have to be some reckoning because again, it’s fast volume, it’s high rotation, so whatever’s on the water is going to be sold soon, and you’ll have to react to pricing pressures much sooner.

SND: What’s new within the spirits range?

Torkelson: We bought the intellectual property to the Tres Agaves organic Tequila brand during Covid. It’s been a great investment for us. The Tequila business continues to expand. There are ways for us to continue to build that franchise. We also do business with the Hanson family, which makes vodka from organic grapes in Sonoma, and we’ll continue to work in that category. And then Amador Whiskey rounds out our portfolio there. That has been a bit more challenging as that category has seen a bubble bursting in some respects.

SND: Two years ago Trinchero announced a distributor realignment. How has that arrangement worked out?

Torkelson: Southern Glazer’s is our biggest trading partner, representing us in California, Arizona, Illinois, New York, and Florida. We do a significant amount of business with RNDC. They’re our second-biggest trading partner, and then Johnson Brothers is third. We look for capabilities. Convenience is an important part of our business with Sutter Home, our 187s, and with the Atomic Boss brand that’s in Tetra Pak. Convenience is a growing trade channel that is part of the decision-making around the route to market.

SND: What’s your big-picture view on the future?

Torkelson: I see a lot of consolidation in the wine space. There’s going to be some M&A activity which will enable us to continue to grow. We are in a very good place in terms of capacity and the facilities we’ve managed to build. California can be a difficult place to do business, and because of our long tenure here we own facilities that you really couldn’t replicate again because the investment would be just too big. That gives us an edge, I believe, whether it’s the 10,000 acres of vineyards we farm, or our wineries that have become crucial and have been modernized and invested in over time.

Tagged : Amador, Atomic Boss, Avissi Prosecco, Hanson, Johnson Brothers, Quattro Theory, RNDC, Southern Glazer's, Tres Agaves, Trinchero Family Estates

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