• Los Angeles Times, Friday, April 4, 2008 11:15 AM

One out of every five glasses of vino drunk in America is a Gallo wine. As the company turns 75 this year amid public and private festivities, outsiders say that the Gallo family has gained a measure of peace from the tensions and tragedies that have chased it through the years. And as successive generations take over running the business--15 family members work for the company--it's clear they plan to compete worldwide.

Gallo brands are sold in 90 countries, including much of Europe, and the company brings foreign wine to the U.S.: Malbec from the mountains of Argentina, Chianti from Tuscany, Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, and Pinotage from Swartland, South Africa. But Gallo also trolls for well-known wine brands, gobbles them up and grows them. Such old-line names as Mirassou, Louis M. Martini and Bridlewood Estate Winery are now among the 60 labels it owns.

Gallo is by far the most profitable wine company in the U.S. "There is almost no waste in that company," says Jon Fredrikson, a wine industry analyst. "They have a product for every grape."

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