Rack & Riddle acquired Weibel Family Winery in Lodi, Calif.  The acquisition makes Rack & Riddle the largest premium, custom sparkling wine producer in the U.S.

Rack & Riddle began in 2007 as a small company focused on producing superior sparkling wine on contract for other wineries using the Methode Champenoise.   Earlier this year it expanded to include Charmat and inline carbonation processing when it leased the Virginia Dare winery facility, which formerly was known as Geyser Peak, from Delicato Family Wines.

Rack & Riddle now has capacity of 3.5 million cases, and will bottle almost 800,000 cases of Methode Champenoise sparkling wine this year, while disgorging 600,000 cases.  Weibel typically makes about 600,000 cases, much under contract.

Weibel will now be known at Rack & Riddle Lodi, and its offices will remain at 1 Winemaker Way in Lodi, Calif.

In a statement, Fred Weibel Jr., owner of Weibel Family Winery, said “Rack & Riddle is the only company that I trust to continue what we long ago began. I feel confident that Rack & Riddle will build upon what my family created and diligently accomplished during our 100-year history, as Rack & Riddle is an organization that conducts itself fairly, ethically, and sustainably.”

The Weibel legacy began in 1937, when Rudolph and Fred, Sr. immigrated to the United States from Switzerland. Fred Jr. has run Weibel for 65 years.