Beringer Wine Estates Announces Sale of NapaRidge.

Business Editors & Food/Wine Writers

NAPA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 3, 2000

Beringer Wine Estates (Nasdaq:BERW) announced it has reached a definitive agreement to sell the Napa Ridge brand asset and inventory to the Bronco Wine Company, Ceres, California for approximately

"The sale of Napa Ridge will enable our company and its management teams to focus their resources on the rest of the wine brands in our portfolio, which continue to demonstrate strong growth potential," commented Walt Klenz, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "This includes our fast-growing superpremium product lines, such as Meridian Vineyards and Beringer Founders' Estate, as well as our ultrapremium wines and brands, including our newest acquisition, St. Clement Vineyards."

The sale of the Napa Ridge brand will produce a one-time gain during the third quarter of fiscal 2000. Excluding this one-time gain, the transaction will be neutral to slightly dilutive to Beringer Wine Estates' earnings in the near term. Incremental wine supply and production capacity will be leveraged to support faster growing brands in the company's portfolio. For the current fiscal year to date, Napa Ridge sales represented less than five percent of total Beringer Wine Estates' revenues.

Napa Ridge, which was established by Beringer Wine Estates in 1986, began as a "fighting varietal" brand with wines selling in the $5-7 retail/bottle range. In recent years, Napa Ridge transitioned to a superpremium brand with wines selling in the $8-11 retail/bottle range. Napa Ridge's critically acclaimed winemaker, David Schlottman, who has been with the brand since its inception and with Beringer Wine Estates since 1976, will remain with Beringer Wine Estates, continuing to work on international projects and acting as a winemaking liaison with new acquisitions such as St. Clement.

Beringer Wine Estates is a market leader in the California premium wine industry. The company consists of six award-winning California wineries: Beringer Vineyards, Meridian Vineyards, Chateau St. Jean, Chateau Souverain, Stags' Leap Winery, and St. Clement Vineyards, plus an import portfolio of premium brands from Italy, France and Chile. Beringer Wine Estates controls over 10,300 acres of vineyard land, all in the coastal regions of California.

Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements, including the company's ability to continue the pace of growth of its Meridian Vineyards and Beringer Founder's Estate lines, the anticipated impact on earnings in the near term and whether the incremental wine supply and production capacity can be leveraged to support other brands in the company's portfolio. For further details and a discussion of the risks and uncertainties of the company's business, refer to the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Form 10-Q dated November 11, 1999, Form 10-K dated September 28, 1999 and Annual Report for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1999. The forward-looking statements represent the company's judgment as of the date of this press release. Beringer Wine Estates Holdings, Inc. disclaims any intent or obligation to update its forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially and adversely from those anticipated, believed, estimated or otherwise indicated.