Blood and Wine: Unauthorized Story of the Gallo Wine Empire

In the secret empires of America's privately held companies, few match the secretiveness of the Mars or Gallo families. The Gallo story here is well-documented and researched and a pleasure to read for those who love the back-room bare-knuckle lives of American family businesses. The arc of an immigrant family's roots in California, traditional winemaking, and the multi-generational business that is now the largest winery in the world is all told here with aplomb by Boston University professor Ellen Hawkes. The animosity between Ernest and Julio Gallo and their younger brother/employee Joseph is a tragedy on par with the House of Atreus. Hawkes skill is in narrative and detail, but she does not compress events to get to artificially create drama. Rather she lets mostly chronological detail and interviews fill-out the sad tale to its fullest. Perhaps those in the food and wine industry will most enjoy the tale of these kingmakers and their silent and unseen control over political machines of the Democrats or Republicans alike. But students of business, California history, oenophiles, and just plain lovers of a good yarn will be fascinated by this well told multigenerational family saga.

LOVE IT! WHAT A VERY COOL LITTLE BOX AND IT COMES WITH ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING YOU NEED. CAN'T WAIT TO HAVE A PARTY! IT WAS NEW AND BETTER AND MORE FUN THAN DESCRIBED. I AM SURE I SAVED MONEY ON IT AS WELL. EMB

I first heard about the conflict in the Gallo family through a series of articles published in the Los Angeles Times in the late 80s/early '90s. It was interesting even then, so when I recently ran across this book, it was a given that I'd read it. Hawkes produced a well-researched book: at the end there's almost 50 pages of annotated notes. She interviewed members of the Gallo family, former employees, and delved into public records and many courtroom filings. The first 3/4 of the book - which fill us in on the Gallo family history and the founding of the winery - is the most interesting. While the business accomplishments of the family are notable, the family dynamics between the brothers are odd, to say the least. Unfortunately, the narrative in the last 1/4 of the book, which details the suits and countersuits, lags considerably. The book slows down and gets entangled in all the legal arguments, which is unfortunate. Nevertheless, the book is still a worthwhile read.

If you're in the business you should read this book.

This is an excellent book. The author does an outstanding job of telling both sides whenever a conflict arises. Obviously a great researcher, Hawkes pulls out information that was deliberately hidden. Hawkes does an amazing job of showing the personality of the subjects with an even hand. This is a fair, balanced account. If one had to find a criticism it would be that Hawkes was too reluctant to be accusatory when the facts are clear. If you have even a slight interest in the subject, this book is worthy of searching for.