Lodi wine brand purchased by national wine distributor
The Wine Group, the third-largest wine distributor in the U.S., announced on Monday that it has purchased Michael David Winery’s 7 Deadly brand, which includes 7 Deadly Zins and 7 Deadly Red.
“We are always looking for strong brands built on quality that have potential to grow, and we are thrilled to bring 7 Deadly into The Wine Group’s portfolio,” Brian Vos, chief executive officer of The Wine Group, said in a Monday press release. “We look forward to continuing to work with 7 Deadly’s growers in the Lodi (American Viticultural Area), which we believe grows the best Zinfandel in California and the world.”
First released in 2002, 7 Deadly Zins has been the No. 1 Zinfandel in the U.S. since 2015, the press release said, and the 7 Deadly Red, which debuted in 2017, has grown approximately 500 percent over the past year.
“We sold 1,000 cases (of 7 Deadly Zins) in 2002, and last year we sold over 300,000 cases, so it’s grown quite a bit,” winery co-owner Dave Phillips said.
Michael David’s winemaking team will transfer their 7 Deadly inventory to The Wine Group, Phillips said, and will work with the new owners for the next several vintages to ensure the brand’s quality remains consistent.
Phillips feels the sale is a sign of greater national recognition not just for his winery, but for the area wine industry as a whole, and hopes to expand Lodi’s position in the international market in the years to come.
“We are very proud of growing it into one of Lodi’s most iconic brands, and it was the right time for our family to let a larger company take control of it,” winery co-owner Dave Phillips said. “Now, we’re going to focus all of our efforts on building our other brands.”