Two Buck Chuck

On the WineLoversPage ning Network I've put up a short video clip of Oz and James visiting The Bronco Wine Vineyard made famous for the low price brand that earned the nickname Two Buck Chuck

I'm hoping that Forum members can now see the ning site content:-

http://wineloverspage.ning.com/video

What do American 'Wine Lovers' think of such mass produced stuff?

There's a clip of T J Rogers at the opposite end of the market as well.

I found this old news link from CBS from 2003:-

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/06/02/eveningnews/main556620.shtml

Cheers, Dave C.

Dave -

I've had Charles Shaw wines on a number of occasions and my impression of them is that they can vary quite a bit. The first chardonnay of theirs that I tasted was very nice - crisp, flavorful, not overripe or overoaked. I thought they might really be on to something. A year or so later, I had another bottle. It was flabby, overripe, and not something I was willing to put in my mouth after the first sip. The reds have been a bit more consistent. They're clean and technically fine but simple and overly fruit-driven for me. IMO, there's nothing really terrible about them and it's obvious that a lot of people enjoy drinking them. But I'd personally rather pay $15 for wine that I find interesting than $2 for one that I don't.

If one drinks 2BC for the same reason one might have iced tea, or soda or some other beverage with food, they can be perfectly fine, and if that is why you drink wine, then something like 2BC makes sense.

But most of us drink wine not just to have a beverage with food... there is something deeper, more ethereal, about the experience....it is the same as the obsession some of us also have with food....it's not necessary to find the best ingredients, to spend more for Kobe beef, or to insist on organic products to make a meal that is relatively healthy and fills one's gullet. However, that is not the purpose if one is `into' food...it's waaay more....

Same with wine.. if someone is happy with a glass or two of white zin or 2 Buck Chuck, I'm fine with it.. and they shoudn't think of us as idgits for be willing to spend X times for a bottle of wine if THAT gives us pleasure.

Happy Thanksgiving to all...

They came out with a "Nouveau Valdiguie" this year (not sure if they have done it in previous years) as I found out when my housemate brought home a bottle.

Looked pretty frightening, although to be honest I never tasted it.

They came out with a "Nouveau Valdiguie" this year (not sure if they have done it in previous years) as I found out when my housemate brought home a bottle.

Looked pretty frightening, although to be honest I never tasted it.

I had the 2005 Nouveau Valdiguié back in the day, and, to tell you the truth, I kind of liked it. Nothing I would seek out, but nothing I would object to having a glass of either. And, at $4, I found the price-quality ratio far better than my scattered experiences with Duboeuf's Nouveau. Of course, it all might depend which million-gallon tank your bottle comes from . . .

They came out with a "Nouveau Valdiguie" this year (not sure if they have done it in previous years) as I found out when my housemate brought home a bottle.

Looked pretty frightening, although to be honest I never tasted it.

Speaking of frightening, remember that 2BC Syrah that Ernie brought to our minijeeb at Cesar?

Mark Lipton