Trader Joe's Hikes Price of 'Two Buck Chuck'
Back-to-back years of bad crops raised production costs for the Trader Joe's standby, named for a former Napa Valley vintner who left the wine business years ago.
After an 11-year run as perhaps the most drinkable cheap wine around, "Two Buck Chuck" fell victim to inflation this month. The iconic Trader Joe's shiraz and cabernet sauvignon wines are retailing for $2.49 in California stores, up 50 cents from the $1.99 price tag that made the wines famous. In Georgia stores, including Peachtree Corners, the price is $2.79. (Prices vary by state due to taxes and shipment fees.) Jokes abound, renaming the Charles Shaw line as "Inflation Chuck" and "Upchuck" (referencing the price, not the quality of the wine). The winemaker, Bronco Wine Co., said poor grape crops affected costs. The company owns about 45,000 acres of vineyards, which had stablized grape production to some extent, the Santa Rosa Press …
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