2007年底，來自芝加哥的商人Colin Wu在義烏市場租下了12,000平方米的攤位，打算出售美國華盛頓州生產的汽車潤滑劑、加拿大瓶裝礦泉水以及加州的Charles Shaw葡萄酒(俗稱兩美元葡萄酒)。
Colin Wu當時想，由於中國出現了一系列產品質量問題，會有國內客戶願意多花些錢購買更安全、更健康的進口產品。然而天不隨人願，他說自己投入的1,000萬元（約150萬美元）幾乎都賠光了。Colin Wu租下的攤位現在只有約六分之一在使用，他正在考慮今年將生意全部停掉。
Colin Wu說，中國政府在幫助進口商開拓國內市場方面也做得不夠。他說希望政府能降低進口稅，這樣他的產品就能具有價格競爭力。Colin Wu說，在加上關稅成本後，他的“兩美元葡萄酒”差不多要賣十美元了。
Charles Shaw is a brand of "extreme value" wine. All from California vineyards, Charles Shaw wines currently include Cabernet Sauvignon, White Zinfandel, Merlot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz, Valdigue in the style of Beaujolais nouveau, and limited quantities of Pinot Grigio. These wines are sold exclusively by Trader Joe's grocery stores, and sell for $1.99 in California.
Charles Shaw wines are affectionately known as "Two Buck Chuck." Due to transportation costs and other factors, in other states the price can go up to around $4. As such, the wine is often referred to as "Three Buck Chuck" or "Four Buck Chuck" relative to the price.
Ownership
Grapevines growing on the grounds of the Bronco Wine Company in
Ceres, California, where Charles Shaw wine is produced. The winery can be seen through the tall trees in the far distance.
The Charles Shaw label is owned by the Bronco Wine Company, headed by Fred Franzia (formerly of Franzia Brothers wines). The Bronco Wine Company produces the Charles Shaw label at their Ceres, California winery, which is not open to the public.
There once was an actual, eponymous winery owned by Charles F. Shaw, which produced Beaujolais-style wines in the Napa Valley AVA. That winery went out of business, and the name was sold to Bronco.[1]
Awards
At the 28th Annual International Eastern Wine Competition, Shaw's 2002 Shiraz received the double gold medal, besting the roughly 2,300 other wines in the competition.[2]
Shaw's 2005 California chardonnay was judged Best Chardonnay from California at the Commercial Wine Competition of the 2007 California Exposition and State Fair. The chardonnay received 98 points, a double gold, with accolades of Best of California and Best of Class.[3]
Labor problems
On May 16, 2008, a 17 year-old immigrant worker named Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez collapsed and later died while pruning vines at a vineyard east of Stockton, CA owned by West Coast Grape Farming, a division of Bronco Wine Company.[4]
On June 8, 2008, an action call went out among bloggers to ask Trader Joe's in their areas to pull Charles Shaw wine until two conditions are met by Bronco Wine Companies:
- "justice for Maria"
- "ensured compliance with state mandated working conditions[5] for all of Bronco Wine’s employees."[6]
On June 23, 2008, the United Farm Workers sent a similar request to its mailing list members. The standard UFW petition asks Trader Joe's to:
- "implement a corporate policy to ensure that your suppliers are not violating the law by failing to provide basic protections"[7]
References
External links
