Fred Franzia, 79, Dies; Founded Bronco Wine Co.
Fred Franzia, the outspoken critic of high-priced wine and California's elite wine culture, who built Bronco Wine Co. into one of the 10 largest wine companies in the U.S. in less than 20 years, died at home Tuesday. He was 79.
He had been having health issues, Bronco employees were told in an email. Renata Franzia Price, managing director for export sales and his daughter, quoted him as saying, “We are fighting a good fight and at the end, we all have an expiration date.”
Franzia frequently said no bottle should cost more than $10. “Who says we’re lower priced? We’re the best price. The others, I think, are overpriced,” Franzia told The San Francisco Chronicle in 2009. When asked how Bronco Wine Co. could sell wine cheaper than a bottle of water, Franzia famously retorted, “They’re overcharging for the water – don’t you get it?”
While Branco was best known for Charles Shaw wine, colloguially known as Two Buck Chuck, he did not own the box-wine that bears his name. His parents sold that company to Coca-Cola in 1973. Today it's owned by Wine Group.
Franzia was born in 1943. His uncle was Ernest Gallo, one of the founders of E.&J. Gallo Winery. He attended Santa Clara University and worked in sales for the family's Franzia Brothers Winery, which was one of the most successful wine producers in the Central Valley. In 1973, when his parents sold Franzia Brothers, he and his brothers founded Bronco.
He acquired over 40,000 acres, became a major player in bulk wines, expanded from Stanislaus County into Napa and Sonoma.
Some of his wine carried Napa labels – Napa Ridge, Napa Creek and Rutherford Vintners, for instance – even though none of the grapes were from Napa. When Napa Valley Vintners got the California Legislature to pass a law requiring Napa-labeled wines to contain 75% grapes from Napa, Franzia launched an unsuccessful legal battle.
His motto during his health battle and repeated many times over, “Be happy and know The Journey Continues….”
He's survived by three siblings, six children and 14 grandchildren.