There has always been a strong bond between celebrities and wine. It could be because there is no award ceremony in which no champagne or some sort of sparkling wine is served, or could be the fascination of owning expensive bottles, who knows. What we know is that celebrity-run wineries are not a rarity, on the contrary, you can find much spread around the world. And yes, you can drink celebrity wines as well because most of them open their Maisons to everyone and even sell their wines at affordable prices.
- Join us on a world tour and get ready to tell us which one in the end gets your Oscar for the best leading celebrity-owned winery.
Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Gayserville, CA – Sonoma Valley
The history of this winery began in 2006 when the Coppola family bought Chateau Souverain, a historic winery located in the Sonoma Valley wine region. The official grand opening of the Francis Ford Coppola Winery dates to 2010 and it unveiled a completely new look, with a modern tasting room, a restaurant, and a museum.
The inspiration behind having so many possible activities to be done at a winery comes from Francis’ fascination with the Tivoli Gardens amusement park in Copenhagen. Like the park in the Danish capital, Francis Coppola wanted his winery to become a space for families to hang out, enjoy nature, eat delicious food and taste high-quality, sustainable wine produced directly in the heart of Sonoma.
Gérard Depardieu - Château de Tigné in Anjou, Loire Valley
French actor Gérard Depardieu has always been very passionate about viticulture and winemaking, and before actually purchasing Château de Tigné in 1989, he acquired several hectares of vineyards around the world. Château de Tigné is in the gorgeous Loire Valley wine region, more precisely between the villages of Anjou and Saumur.
Apparently, at first, Gérard Depardieu only bought the château do imitate American film stars that started to get into winemaking in California, but thanks to his friend Jean Carmet, he was able to establish a name for Château de Tigné in the wine world.
The vineyards surrounding the château account for 100 hectares and two main grapes are grown there, Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Andres Iniesta - Bodega Iniesta in Fuentealbilla, Castilla la Mancha, Spain
Andres Iniesta is mostly known for having been one of the world’s best footballers, as he played alongside names like Lionel Messi. Not many people know that once he retired, he started to fully dedicate his life to winemaking.
Bodega Iniesta, located in the Castilla la Mancha wine region, first opened during the 90s when the footballer’s father planted 10 hectares of vineyards hoping to start producing his own wine one day. In 2010, the winery opened to the public for wine tastings and tours.
Today, Bodega Andres Iniesta counts more than 300 hectares of vineyards in which 14 grape varieties are grown.
Nancy Pelosi - Zinfandel Lane Vineyard in St. Helena and Skellenger Lane Vineyard in Napa Valley
The Speaker of the House of Representatives is one of the most influential people in Washington DC and she’s also a big wine enthusiast. To relax from the chaotic and frantic life in the District of Columbia, Nancy Pelosi loves to spend time in California in between her two wineries, one in St. Helena and one in the iconic Napa Valley.
Nancy Pelosi manages the two properties together with her husband, Paul Pelosi, and the couple makes a lot of income from selling their grapes to other winemakers in the state. At their Zinfandel Lane Vineyard winery, they are allowed to produce circa 18.000 litres of wine per year and hold weekly wine tastings for guests who want to try US Gov certified wine!
Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie – Château de Miraval in Provence
Among the celebrity-run wineries around the world, Château de Miraval is probably the most famous one, as it was acquired by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in 2011. This stunning location in the Provence wine region in France was also used as the couple’s wedding venue in 2014.
The château has always been mainly managed by Brad Pitt together with winemaker Marc Perrin, who helped him, and Angelina Jolie, produce the winery's iconic Provence rosés. The first ever vintage produced by “Brangelina” was the rosé Miraval in 2012 which was later classified as one of the world’s best rosés by the Wine Spectator.
After their divorce in 2016, there has been a lot of speculation surrounding the couple’s jointed shares of the winery. In October 2021, it was revealed that Angelina Jolie sold her 50% to the group Tenute del Mondo. But no worries, the newest vintage from Château de Miraval, Muse de Miraval, just came out in April and it’s ready to be tasted!
Sting - Tenuta il Palagio in Tuscany
It’s no secret that the former leader of the Police, Sting, has always loved Italy as his number one holiday destination. That is why, together with his wife they bought Tenuta il Palagio more than 20 years ago and recently opened it to all the guests that want to experience the ultimate luxurious holiday.
Located in the lush hills of the Chianti wine region, right in the heart of Tuscany, Tenuta il Palagio is a place where to relax, enjoy the amazing Tuscan landscape and drink some good Toscana IGT red wine produced on the property. Wine isn’t the only high-quality product produced at Tenuta il Palagio, you can also buy extra virgin olive oil, honey, fresh fruit and vegetables and maybe why not, get an autograph from Sting as well.
Invivo Wines - Marlborough and Central Otago, NZ
There are no celebrities involved in the foundation of this winery, but if you keep on reading you will soon discover why it made it to this list. One of the reasons has also to do with an event happening very soon.
Invivo Wines was born thanks to two New Zealander guys living in London. Their dream was to give more visibility to wines coming from New Zealand, so they put together their ideas and invested in their vision. Today, Invivo Wines got two big celebrities on board: BBC presenter Graham Norton and the iconic Sarah Jessica Parker. On their official website, you can buy Graham Norton’s very own Irish gin, in three super colourful shades, or take part in an online blending session with Sarah Jessica Parker.
This year, Invivo is launching two special editions of Prosecco DOC dedicated to the Eurovision Song Contest. Which song do you want to celebrate by popping a bottle of Invivo x Unity Prosecco DOP?
Dwyane Wade – Wade Cellars in California
Is there something Dwyane Wade cannot do? We don’t think so, because he’s not only one of the best basketball players that have ever played in the NBA, he’s also a very passionate wine lover.
Wade Cellars were born in 2014, after Dwyane Wade, who has always been passionate about Napa Valley’s incredible Cabernet Sauvignon, visited the wine region during the harvest season. Together with his mentor and friend Jayson Pahlmeyer, opened the winery and launched his first two red wines in 2015, the Wade Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon and the Three Red Blend.
Today, the winery successfully produced delicious Cabernet Sauvignons, white wines made from Chenin Blanc and rosé wines as well. A 3-points basket, what do you think?
Jay-Z and Armand the Brignac Champagne
Rapper Jay-Z, husband of the one and only Beyoncé, loved so much Armand de Brignac Champagne that decided to buy the whole brand in 2014. Lucky him, a glass of champagne a day keeps the doctor away, right?
Champagne Armand the Brignac is produced by the Maison Cattier, a winery located in the Montagne de Reims appellation in the Champagne wine region. The brand’s champagne bottles are easily recognisable by the metal ace of spades placed on them, which makes the sparkling wine so much more appealing to A-listers.
In 2021, it was announced that Jay-Z sold 50% of the shares of Armand de Brignac to LVHM, the group that owns Moët Hennessy. This partnership is set to bring the popularity of the Armand de Brignac champagne to the next level, by trying to make it more accessible and known to the general public. For now, we’ll just stick to the champagnes from the fabulous winemakers that you can find on your website.
Lady Gaga’s collaboration with Dom Perignon
We’re sure there are some Little Monsters among you reading this article, and that’s why we didn’t want to leave this incredible collaboration out of the list.
In 2021, the iconic champagne brand Dom Perignon unveiled an even more iconic collaboration with Lady Gaga and released two vintages produced together with the star, the 2010 and 2006.
Both champagnes come in a special edition bottle and box that fully represent the creative persona and constant need of reinvention of Lady Gaga and the mastery of Dom Perignon to always be in the moment.
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- The Kardashian’s favourite Napa Valley winery is Del Dotto Vineyards. It supposedly increased its visits by 48% after appearing in an episode of the family’s reality show, Keeping up with the Kardashians.
- Corton Grand Cru is President Emmanuel Macron’s favourite wine. This white wine from the marvellous Bourgogne wine region is often given as a gift from the French president to his guests.
- Italo-American entrepreneur Joe Bastianich owns a very successful winery, together with his mum Lidia Bastianich, located in the town of Cividale del Friuli, in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia wine region. The winery’s name is Bastianich and more recently, they also acquired a winery in Piedmont called Brandini.
- Charming actor Richard Gere’s favourite wine is Brunello di Montalcino. We wonder if he shared a bottle with Julia Roberts on the set of Pretty Woman.
- Even Queen Elizabeth II has her own wine, coming straight from the vineyards at Windsor Castle. The Windsor Vineyard English Quality Sparkling Wine is perfectly fit for a royal as it combines all the main grape varieties used for champagne, just with some royality added to the mix.
