Two Buck Chuck accused of containing animal remains

A Huffington Post blogger has hit out at popular American wine brand Two Buck Chuck, accusing the wines of containing dead animal remains.

As reported by CNBC, California-based blogger Chris Knox laid into the Charles Shaw wine brand (affectionately known as Two Buck Chuck) and its machine harvesting practice in a blog that appeared on The Huffington Post last week.

“Everything, and I do mean everything (including all those unripe grapes, rotten grapes, leaves, stems, birds, rodents, and insects) gets tossed into the crusher and transferred to largest tanks to ferment.

“So think about all the animal blood and parts that may have made their way into your wine next time you crack open that bottle of Two Buck Chuck,” Knox wrote.

Bronco Wine Company CEO Fred Franzia

Fred Franzia, CEO of Bronco Wine Company, makers of Two Buck Chuck, hit back at the claims, telling CNBC Knox “didn’t know what he was talking about.” “We’re looking for quality wines and quality grapes. We’re not looking for animals.

“If you worry about things like that, you shouldn’t eat anything, you shouldn’t drink anything,” Franzia told CNBC. “When the wine’s fermenting, they’re going to eliminate anything that’s possibly there,” he added.

Franzia is angry at The Huffington Post for printing the blog in the first place. “They should be ashamed of themselves. They were the ones stupid enough to print that type of crap,” he told CNBC.

The Huffington Post has since removed the blog, which was posted through a separate news site called Quora, as it was deemed not to meet the online news site’s editorial standards.

Two Buck Chuck has sold over 800 million bottles since the brand was founded in 2002. The brand is sold at Trader Joe’s grocery stores in nine US states. Franzia has grown Bronco Wines into a huge business made up of nearly 80 different wine brands.

Sales of Two Buck Chuck remain strong, despite its price having crept up to $2.49 last year. The $2.49 price tag had shoppers searching for new names, with some customers joking that the brand should now be called “Upchuck.”

The Charles Shaw range is formed of a number of single varietal wines, including Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet, Sauvignon, Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, White Zinfandel and Valdigué in the style of Beaujolais Nouveau.