The seasons have turned the vines at the 53-acre Andretti Winery in Napa bare. Racing legend Mario Andretti, in denim work shirt and a winery logo-ed navy fleece vest, is leaning against the tasting room counter. He’s reminiscing about his old friend and fellow racer, Paul Newman. “Somebody goes on and everyone throws bouquets. Paul deserved every one of them,” the 68-year-old Andretti says. “Inever knew anyone so unselfish. He was a kick in the ass to be around. A very special individual in every way.”
Andretti is just one maker of a growing number of so-called celebrity wines. But unlike many celebrity wines, Andretti’s is made at his own actual brick-and-mortar winery started in 1996. “I wanted to have a say. There’s nothing more delicate than the palate.”
Andretti likens himself to the driver. His accomplished winemaker, Bob Pepi, is the engineer.
“I can’t fix the engine but I know if it’s performing,” Andretti says.
What’s more common is celebrities placing their label on someone else’s wine, like Andretti’s late friend. Paul Newman’s Newman’s Own food line, whose sales benefit charity, introduced a chardonnay and cabernet this year. It’s made by Trinchero Family Estates.
Either way it’s a burgeoning business.
A March study by the Nielsen Company found sales of celebrity wines on the rise. Supermarket sales were up nearly 19 percent from 2007. They now represent nearly one percent – about $42 million – of total wine sales. Dollar sales have increased eight-fold since 2000.
“Some suppliers, particularly wine suppliers, do not have the resources to launch big advertising and promotional campaigns and a celebrity can lend a brand instant recognition,” said Richard Hurst, Nielsen’s senior vice president for Beverage Alcohol in the study.
Nielsen found that consumers on average paid $8.50 for celebrity wines versus $5.75 for table wine.
One reason for the popularity is that in a People magazine society, a celebrity endorsement tilts a buyer’s scales.
“There are 120,000 labels. People are always looking for a clue as to what might be a good wine,” said Robert Smiley, director of the wine industry program at UC Davis’ Graduate School of Management. “When celebrities put their name on a wine it’s because they’ve tasted it and it’s good or at least an indicator of some possibility of quality.”
Almost every flavor of celebrity is getting into the act – even dead ones.
Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe have wines. Monroe’s can fetch a high price from collectors more interested in the labels than the content of the bottles.
Clos du Bois makes Jerry Garcia wines with labels featuring artwork of the late guitar player. There are plenty of other sports stars, too.
Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana’s Montagia wine is made by Beringer in St. Helena – although Montana helps with the blending. A 2003 Montagia cabernet sells for $80.
Arnold Palmer Wines are by Luna Vineyards on the Silverado Trail in Napa. Luna’s wine store sells a three-bottle box of the golfing great’s 2005 Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Reserve Cab for $105, discounted for the holidays at $89.99.
“Tee off this holiday season with three great wines from Arnold Palmer,” the ad reads.
ProGolfWine.com offers Palmer’s reserve cab, Greg Norman’s 2002 reserve Shiraz and a bottle of Ernie Els’ Stellenbosch for $250 including $50 in GOLFPAC Travel Bucks, a one-year subscription to Golf Magazine and a 20 percent discount at WineontheWay.com as the perfect holiday gift for golfers.
“These wines are often the subject of gifts,” said Smiley. “If someone is a football fan you buy Joe Montana. An auto racing fan, you give them Mario Andretti.”
But wait there’s more sports icons:
Mendocino Wine Company in Ukiah produces Mike Ditka Wines. Larry Bird’s Legends wine is made by Consentino Winery in Yountville. Tom Seaver is a new entry in the celebrity wine world as is Dick Vermeil, former NFL coach.
Former ice skater Peggy Fleming and her husband Greg Jenkins produced the first wines at their Santa Cruz Mountains winery in 2003. A breast cancer survivor, Fleming bottles Victories Rosé of which $2 of each sale is donated to research and awareness of the disease.
Other racecar drivers have followed in the Andretti tradition. Randy Lewis owns Lewis Cellars in Napa. August Briggs Winery in Calistoga created the Jeff Gordon wine collection.
The Wine Institute lists 27 celebrity-owned wineries in California and another eight celebrities who have lent their name to wine labels.
Oddly the list doesn’t include Francis Ford Coppola’s Rubicon Estate, formerly Inglenook and Neibaum-Coppola. Coppola has been buying property in Napa since 1975, shortly after the first Godfather movie.
Annual production of his Rubicon wine has grown from 1,000 cases to 50,000.
What’s surprising is the width of spectrum of celebrities wine attracts.
Porn star Savanna Samson’s Sogno Uno won a 91 rating from wine expert Robert Parker when it was introduced several years ago. Walt Disney’s daughter, Diane Miller, owns Silverado Vineyard in Napa.
A host of rock stars hawk wine. Vince Neil, Mötley Crüe’s lead singer has the Vince Vineyards label. Mumm in Rutherford makes Santana DVX, a sparkling wine named, yes, after Carlos Santana.
Mick Fleetwood, the founder of Fleetwood Mac, has his Private Cellars made by the Langtry Estate and Vineyards in Lake County.
Jonathan Cain, Journey’s keyboardist and Eddie Money – the “Wanna Go Back” label – are a couple more.
Even rapper Lil John offers a cab, merlot and chardonnay at his Little Johnathan Winery. Celebrity Vintners aren’t a new phenomenon, though.
In 1976, Raymond Burr’s partner, Robert Benevides, purchased property near Geyserville that is now named after the late star of Perry Mason and Ironsides.
Fess Parker, film and TV’s Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, has been planting 700-plus acres near Santa Barbara since 1989. A lot of the movie Sideways was filmed on Parker’s property.
Tommy Smothers, the guitar wielding of the two brothers, bought 50 acres on Remick Ridge in Kenwood in 1977. The label of the wine used to prominently feature the Brothers Smothers but now they’ve shrunk the logo to make Remick Ridge the focal point.
“How else do you think they can get $45 for a bottle of cab?” quips David Cohen, part of the wine-growing co-op Tommy Smothers belongs to and the guy behind the counter of The Wine Room – what used to be the tasting room of the Smothers Brothers Winery.
Now various wines, including those from Cohen’s Moondance Cellars are offered in the bright cheery tasting room, which has several dentists’ spit bowls mounted along the counter to toss the wine glass lees.
The place couldn’t look more different than the old wood-paneled dark and brooding Smothers Winery.
“When we started the co-op 12 years ago I came in one weekend and gutted it,” said Cohen. “Tommy came in on Monday and literally said, ‘What the f___ did you do to my tasting room?”
The Wine Room is probably one of the few places where one can still find a bottle of Pat Paulsen wine. The late comedian, a regular on the Smothers Brothers television show who routinely ran for president, was one of the earliest celebrity wineries in Sonoma. His tasting room in Asti was shuttered by bankruptcy years ago.
David Cohn is the cousin of Bruce Cohn, another venerable celebrity vintner a few miles down Highway 12 from the old Smothers place. Cohn, the manager of the Doobie Brothers, has seen his winery grow enormously since his first crush in 1982.
Back then, the tasting room was in the milking barn of what had previously been a dairy. Now the house Cohn used to live in has become the spacious tasting room and offices for a venture that bottles over 150,000 cases annually.
Each fall, Cohn puts on a charity concert featuring the Doobies as well as other performers like The Turtles, Todd Rungren, Kris Kristofferson and Dave Mason to raise money for the National Veterans Foundation.
“He’s a very generous man,” said Nanci, the curly gray-haired pourer behind the elegantly wood-paneled tasting counter. “What goes around, comes around.”
It’s not California-centric either.
Gerard Depardieu owns vineyards in several countries. New Zealand actor Sam Neill of Jurassic Park fame has a winery in his home country. An Italian winery bottles a label celebrating Bob Dylan’s album, Planet Waves. Sting has a place in Italy that bottles wines solely for his friends and family.
Where will it end?
Andretti says celebrity may bring people in the door but quality brings them back.
“Maybe that gets people to come but to keep them coming we have to earn our stripes every day.”
