For centuries, many fine French wines have been sold by négociants -- business people who buy wine in bulk or bottle from small vineyards, apply their own labels and sell it to the world. It works well for wineries too small to afford individual distributors. Now that system is catching on in the United States.

One such American négociant is Cameron Hughes, a 35-year-old San Francisco entrepreneur who buys wines around the world, adds his own label and sells them online and in 150 Costco warehouse stores, including 10 in South Florida. His prices: $12 to $20.

''I can keep the prices low because I have no equipment -- not even a barrel -- and no inventory,'' Hughes says. ``We're totally virtual.''

Here's how it works: Hughes and three winemakers working for him seek out unneeded wine from top wineries from California's Napa Valley to Australia's Barossa Valley. They buy it in tanks, rent time from nearby wineries to blend and bottle it, then send it directly to customers.

A winery making $100-a-bottle wine, for example, might have some grapes that don't quite measure up, so they sell them to Hughes.

'It might not make a great $100 wine, but it makes a smokin' $20 wine,'' he says.

Then there are years when great weather simply turns out too much wine.

''We're swimming in 2005 cabernet sauvignon,'' he says.

Hughes won't say which wineries he buys from, but he describes the circumstances for each wine.

For his Wine Lot 39, a shiraz-viognier blend from Australia, Hughes says he and his partner visited the winery and helped decide on the final blend.

For his Wine Lot 57, a chardonnay from the Napa Valley, his winemaker blended five lots from two producers in Napa's southern Carneros area, where fogs blowing up from the San Francisco Bay keep the weather cool to preserve the crispness of the wines.

You can learn if a Costco near you stocks Hughes' wines or order online, at chwine.com.

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