some reviews and some alternates at a good price from Elin McCoy at Bloomberg
Every wine lover wants a deal, which is one reason the number of private-label wines is growing fast and furiously.
Trader Joe’s is often credited with popularizing the trend in the U.S. in 2002 with its Two Buck Chuck, the nickname for its exclusive Charles Shaw line of wines priced back then at $2 a bottle (the last time I tasted them they were still really awful).
So what is a “private label” wine? It’s a brand created specifically for one retailer, hotel, or restaurant, often with their input on flavor profile and style, usually—and this is key—to sell at a particular price, lower than similar wines from known wineries.
Even restaurants such as the French Laundry and Nobu have jumped on the bandwagon, to offer exclusive bottles to their guests, and such steak houses as Del Frisco’s sell plushy cabernets under their own labels.
Prepare for more. The U.S. is still way behind Europe and the U.K., where private labels account for about 35 percent of big retailers’ sales.
The real question is: how good are these wines, anyway? No matter how cheap, if a wine is too awful to drink, it’s not a good deal. Costco’s popular Asolo prosecco is only $6.99 a bottle, but I found it gummy and neutral tasting.