The Best-Selling Wine Brand In The US

The United States is the fourth-largest wine producer in the world, and it's common knowledge that Americans also love to drink wine. In fact, it's the biggest consumer of wine globally, so being the country's best-selling brand is no small feat. This title goes to a name you've probably heard before: Barefoot, which, according to the American Association of Wine Economists, sold a staggering amount: almost 19.5 million nine-liter cases in 2023.

Barefoot is a budget-friendly brand based in California and owned by E&J Gallo Winery. Instantly recognizable by its iconic footprint logo, the label can be found just about everywhere wine is sold. Aside from your average bottle costing between $5 to $10, another part of its broad appeal comes down to its number of offerings. As of 2026, Barefoot offers around 30 unique still and sparkling wines, and its lineup has only expanded over the years, including the launch of its popular spritzer range in 2013.

The brand's expansive portfolio covers many of the classic grapes that helped make Californian vineyards world-famous — including iconic varieties like cabernet sauvignon and merlot — while also branching out into sweeter and less traditional territory. Alongside familiar reds and whites, shoppers will also find fruit-forward blends and more unconventional offerings like Barefoot Fruitscato, which combines wine with flavors such as strawberry, peach, and pineapple. While this eclectic range might send your old-world European winemaker into a frenzy, it's also what makes Barefoot appealing. Whether you're looking for a bottle to pair with dinner or a simple no-pressure wine that won't feel wasted in a sangria, chances are Barefoot will fit the bill.

The world's oldest wine houses can trace their roots back centuries, with many of Europe's most celebrated dating to the 1700s and even earlier. By comparison, Barefoot is a newcomer to the scene. The brand first appeared in 1965, less than 35 years after the repeal of Prohibition, which helped revive the American wine industry and ushered in a new era of commercially produced U.S. wines. Despite its relatively young age, Barefoot's rise was remarkably fast. In just a few decades, Barefoot grew from a small California label to not just the best-selling wine brand in the United States, but also one of the best-selling wine brands in the world.

The brand's story starts in the garage of Davis Bynum, who started producing "Barefoot Bynum Burgundy," with the name inspired by the ancient practice of crushing grapes barefoot. It wasn't until 1986, however, that the Barefoot brand found itself, when business partners Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey purchased the rights to the "Barefoot" name and officially launched Barefoot Cellars, and began by selling popular grapes like cabernet sauvignon and sauvignon blanc.

Operating from the laundry room of a rented farmhouse, Houlian and Harvey were able to put Barefoot on the map by creating a cheap and approachable marketing tactic they called "Worthy Cause Marketing." This involved donating wine to various charity fundraisers, which built the brand a positive reputation that spread by word-of-mouth nationwide. In 1995, head winemaker Jennifer Wall massively expanded the brand's catalogue, which was eventually acquired by corporate giant E&J Gallo Winery, who utilized its vast wealth of resources to push Barefoot into six continents and cement its status as a global staple.