One of the most difficult parts of creating a Top 10 list of wineries is working out exact volumes and values — many of the world’s top companies are privately held, and don’t reveal that information. Even publicly listed companies don’t always give volumes in their mandatory annual reports. So while all the companies on this list belong to the Top 10, their actual ranking is something of an educated guess and can shift rapidly.
Notable trends among the big companies include: a race to premiumisation and luxury; an expansion into spirits and RTDs; and more non-alcoholic offerings.
1. Gallo
Founded in Modesto, California in 1933 by Ernest and Julio Gallo, the winery was already the largest in the USA by 1966. Today, it’s far and away the largest in the world — and getting bigger. For s decade, the company has been on an acquisition drive, snapping up key vineyards and brands from around California.
In 2021 it bought more than 30 brands from Constellation, while in 2023 it made headlines with the purchases of Rombauer in St. Helena, known for its bestselling Chardonnay. In August 2023, it bought Massican, the premium white wine brand created in 2009 by Dan Petroski.
Gallo opened a spirits plant in South Carolina in 2022, and is expanding production. The business magazine Forbes estimates Gallo's turnover at US$5bn (€4.6bn). Unlike other diversified companies, wine accounts for the majority of the business.
2. Constellation Brands
In the past few years, Constellation has sold dozens of its entry-level tier brands to other wine companies, and is now transforming its core Robert Mondavi range into a fine wine brand. According to Wine Business Monthly, it’s renovating the winery’s hospitality centre, opening a tasting room in Napa, and gradually taking the Robert Mondavi name of its mass market wines like Woodbridge.
In the 2023 financial year (until February 28, 2023), wine sales amounted to US$ 1.7bn (approx. €1.6bn). In the first nine months of the current financial year, it fell by a further 10%. In 2023 it bought luxury Napa brand Domaine Curry, plus acquired a stake in the alcohol-free TÖST. Its goals this year include expanding its international footprint and its DtC offerings, and to focus more on streaming and social content.
3. Treasury Wine Estates (TWE)
In 2022, TWE made Penfolds into a multi-country brand, with the Penfolds name now appearing on wines from California and France, including a Champagne. It also introduced its 'One by Penfolds' range of Chinese wines. This was seen as a strategy to circumvent the Chinese punitive tariffs on Australian wines and at the same time to further capitalize on the brand's reputation in China.
The Australian media says these kept TWE on track financially at a time when other Australian companies are facing headwinds. TWE’s luxury portfolio now accounts for 50% of global sales.
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