Gallo to Launch First French Wine

Red Bicyclette, produced in the Languedoc region, will hit store shelves by fall.

H. Lee Murphy
Posted: June 25, 2004

At this past weekend's Vinexpo Americas in Chicago, E. & J. Gallo unveiled its first French wine, a line named Red Bicyclette that is produced in the Languedoc region and will be widely available in the United States by fall.

The 2003 debut vintage will include varietal bottlings of Merlot, Syrah and Chardonnay, sourced from a group of Languedoc growers called the Cooperative du Sieur d'Arques, whose headquarters are in the town of Limoux. The wines will retail for $10 to $12 per bottle. Red Bicyclette will first be available in July in Illinois, then in September for the rest of the nation. Gallo is the exclusive importer.

The label pictures a jaunty beret-wearing Frenchman, peddling a two-wheeler with baguettes hanging over a basket on his handlebars. A dog is trotting alongside, clutching his own baguette. The choice of name was meant to be whimsical, said Jason Knight, senior marketing manager for Gallo. "Bicyclette sounded right -- a little French, a little American. We wanted something that would be memorable and stand out on a store shelf."

Gallo aims to compete with similar American-produced French wines, such as the fast-growing Fat Bastard line from Seattle's Click Wine Group, which is also sourced from the Languedoc and similarly priced. More than 400,000 cases of Fat Bastard were sold in the United States last year.

"By 2006 our goal is to be the No. 1 imported premium French wine," Knight said. He added, "We got a very positive reception at Vinexpo, which we felt was a good place to be introducing the product."

But some Vinexpo visitors noted that Red Bicyclette won't have an easy ride. "There are a lot of low-priced French wines coming from producers like Duboeuf already," said Johnson Ho, owner of the Knightsbridge Wine Shoppe in the Chicago suburb of Northbrook. "Red Bicyclette will need a lot of marketing behind it to stand out."