News Briefs for March 6, 2012

•Trinchero Family Estates has launched new varietals for two of its brands—Sutter Home has added a Bubbly Pink Moscato and Ménage à Trois has introduced a Pinot Grigio. Both are available now nationwide, priced around $8.99 to $9.99 a 750-ml. Sourced from vineyards across California, Bubbly Pink Moscato features crisp melon, honey and mango flavors. Ménage à Trois’ new release is 100% Pinot Grigio, as opposed to the brand’s flagship white blend of three varietals, and shows “tropical fruit aromas and flavors balanced by mouth-watering acidity.” Ménage à Trois saw volume increase 12.6% last year in the U.S. to pass the 2-million-case mark, according to Impact Databank. Sutter Home, which sells over 10.3 million cases annually, has been one of the biggest players in the Moscato boom—its existing Moscato variant sold 940,000 cases in the 52 weeks through January 7, according to Nielsen.

•Fast-rising Italian wine brand Riondo is launching a new red blend, Riondo Rosso, in the U.S. this month. Sourced from Cantine Riondo’s vineyards in the Veneto, Riondo Rosso is a 50-50 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot aged on the lees of Amarone. Selling for $12.99 to $14.99 a 750-ml., it’s packaged in a glass bottle styled to resemble clay. Riondo Rosso joins a line whose top sellers include Riondo Prosecco, Riondo Pink (a Charmat method Rosé), Pinot Grigio and Amarone ($29.99). An Impact “Hot Prospect,” Riondo was up 69% to 247,000 cases across its portfolio last year. With the addition of a new sales force targeting the western half of the U.S. in 2012, the company expects growth to ramp up even further this year.

•Young’s Market Company has added exclusive rights to the wide-ranging Vintus wine portfolio to its offering in California. Pleasantville, New York-based Vintus was founded by former Kobrand executive Michael Quinttus in 2004. Its range includes E. Guigal from France’s Rhône Valley; Bruno Paillard from Champagne; Quinta do Noval from Portugal; Tommasi, Schiopetto and Sandrone from Italy; Errazuriz from Chile; Finca Decero from Argentina; Telmo Rodriquez from Spain; Dog Point from New Zealand and Mitolo and Heartland from Australia, as well as Napa’s Chateau Montelena among others.

•Detroit’s Atwater Brewery has unveiled plans to build a new, expanded brewery by 2014 to help meet rising demand. The facility will have an initial capacity of 100,000 barrels (1.38 million 2.25-gallon cases), and the ability to expand to 500,000 barrels (6.9 million cases). A site for the new brewery has yet to be decided. The move follows Atwater’s recent installation of four new tanks, which have boosted its existing facility’s capacity by 400%. Atwater is expecting production to double to 15,000 barrels (206,000 cases) in 2012 and double again to 30,000 barrels (413,000 cases) by 2013. Atwater currently offers more than a dozen craft beers, including top seller Dirty Blond. About 60% of the brewery’s product sells within Michigan, with additional distribution throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois and New England.

•Concord, California-based BevMo is set to open two new locations in California this spring. Located in Paso Robles and Los Angeles, the two stores are slated to open in May and June, respectively. The new outposts join the most recent BevMo opening in San Jose, California, late last year. BevMo currently operates 53 stores in Northern California, 52 in Southern California and 10 in Arizona, and is actively scouting additional California sites, according to a company spokesperson. Meanwhile, BevMo’s plans follow the recent California expansion of rival retailer Total Wine & More, which opened a second store in Sacramento late last year. Both chains are also expected to make a move into Washington state, where the recent passage of Initiative 1183 will end the state’s retail monopoly on liquor June 1.

Tagged : BevMo, California, craft beer, retailers, Trinchero Family Estates, Young's Market Co

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