With the acquisition of 5 Total Beverage stores in 1998 and steady expansion thereafter, Total Wine & More is the largest independent fine wine retailers in the United States and is among just a handful of fine wine retailers who operate in multiple states. It is the leading non-supermarket seller of fine wine in the United States. Today, brothers David, Robert, John, and Tom Trone work along with their father, Thomas Trone, in their corporate office in Potomac, Maryland.
Total Wine currently has over 50 locations in nine states (Delaware, Florida, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, California and Virginia).
Each Total Wine store carries approximately 8,000 different types of wine, 2,000 types of spirits (where permitted by law) and 1,000 different beers. Each store has wine consultants who are knowledgeable and passionate about wine. The stores are large and spacious, ranging from 9,000 to . They also provide in-house publications to their customers, including a newsletter (The Wine Advisor), the annual Total Guide to Wine, and a quarterly Buying Guide which lists brands and prices.
Total Beverage was founded in 1992 as the last retail venture created by the legendary Herbert Haft before Haft's Dart Group imploded in a morass of internecine legal battles, Total Beverage was acquired in 1998 by Total Wine & More. The Total Beverage in Thornton, Colorado is not and was not affiliated with the Total Beverage founded by Herbert Haft, though there are numerous design cues that are similar to the original Total Beverage stores in Virginia. At the time of Total Wine & More acquisition of Total Beverage, there were 5 stores 3 in Virginia (Chantilly, McLean, Alexandria) and 2 in Illinois which went under the moniker Total Beverage & Then Some (Elmwood Park and Naperville), the Illinois stores have seen been sold or shut down.