THE LATEST issue of Wine Spectator has awarded 90 points to a $15 bottle of wine. That?s an unusually high score, but what distinguishes the Shiraz-Cabernet 2010 is that it is from the Greg Norman Estates in Australia. The golfing legend is among a host of celebrities who have invested in wineries as part of a personal passion or because it makes good business sense. Sportsmen seem especially inclined to choosing wine-making as a hobby or as a fall-back profession. For wife Victoria?s 34th birthday, David Beckham, British soccer star, bought her the latest in trendy lifestyle accessories: her own vineyard in California?s Napa Valley. Golfers are, however, heavily inclined to the wine business. South African golfer Ernie Els has tied up with Stellembosch vineyards to produce his own label, while another former legend, Nick Faldo, also has a collaboration with Katnook Estates in Australia to make his signature wines. One of the earliest was a golfing legend from yore, Arnold Palmer, who markets his own wines in collaboration with Luna Vineyards in Napa Valley.
Hollywood, of course, is now the prime source of celebrity wineries, leading to the quip about Hollywood and Vine (a famous street in Los Angeles). Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie own Chateau Miravel in Provence, France. The 2012 vintage of Pitt and Jolie?s Chateau Miraval Rose was named the best rose in the world by Wine Spectator. Six-thousand bottles of the rose were available for sale last March and all sold out within minutes. The vineyard has quite a celebrity history. There is a recording studio on the estate that has been used by Sting, The Cranberries and Pink Floyd. One of the wines produced here is a Pink Floyd Rose. There is also a Lady Jane white wine, so there could be a Rolling Stones connection as well. Pitt and Jolie along with Johnny Depp, who also owns a winery, and rock star Sting, do so mostly for personal passion rather than a commercial venture, as does British singer Cliff Richards, but other celebrities are leveraging their name recognition as a selling tool in the wine industry. Today, celebrity-owned wineries can be lucrative business endeavours. A recent Nielson survey showed that sales of celebrity wines had gone up 19% over previous years, which roughly translates into $50 million. Apart from personal or business interest, starting a winery or vineyard offers tax benefits in almost all wine-producing countries.
Many non-American stars do so because the brand value in their own countries ensures good sales. Antonio Banderas owns a winery in Spain, which began operation as Anta Bodegas. In 2009, Banderas became a partner in the endeavour, renaming the winery Anta Banderas. The most serious winemaker is Gerard Depardieu, who has been tending to his vineyards in Bordeaux, Languedoc, in the south of France, as well as in Spain, Morocco and Argentina, where he is well-known since the 1980s. Indeed, wine-making has become the chic hobby of choice for the world?s rich and famous. Whether actually buying a vineyard or simply partnering with a well-known vintner, celebrities from rock stars (Santana, Bob Dylan, Sting, Cliff Richards) to politicians like Speakers of the House Nancy Pelosi, and Hollywood producers like Francis Ford Copolla have got into vineyards in California and abroad. Most celebrities make their wines available for purchase and keep their estates open for tastings and tours. Unsurprisingly, the public?s response has been overwhelmingly positive. Visitor attendance at celebrity vineyards has been surging as well. The Rubicon Estate, the recently renamed winery bought by Oscar-winning director Coppola in 1975, has seen such an increase of visitors that it has been forced to institute a $25-a-head parking fee to control the traffic. Movies also add to brand value. Since it was featured in the 2004 film Sideways, former actor Fess Parker?s winery has seen a marked increase in attendance.
The convergence of wine and celebrity is hardly a new phenomenon. For actors who live in the proximity of Napa and other California green spots, buying and running wineries has long been a favoured second career. In addition to Coppola, Sam Neill of Jurassic Park fame has been producing ecologically-friendly pinot noirs in his native New Zealand?s Central Otago region at his Two Paddocks vineyard since 1993. Other celebrities merely lend their names. Singer-songwriter Bob Dylan has been honoured by Planet Waves, an Italian red wine produced by Marche?s Fattoria Le Terrazze. Named after Dylan?s 1974 album, the blend of Montepulciano and Merlot is offered in a bottle signed by the singer-songwriter legend. The real stars, of course, are those who are genuine wine enthusiasts. Richards is certainly one and his estate in Portugal?s Algarve region has been a source of great pride and joy. His wines are called Vida Nova and produced at the Quinta do Miradouro, Quinta do Moinho and Vale do Sobriero vineyards under the umbrella brand Adega do Cantor or ?The Singer?s Cellar?. Similarly, French star Depaedieu is very active in the production and business dealings of the wineries he owns in several countries across the globe. He even lists his occupation on his passport as vigneron, or wine-maker, and not actor. Sting is another enthusiast and his winery in Tuscany, Italy, is purely for personal pleasure and holidays in a superb setting.