Sarah Jessica Parker has officially launched her first wine – Invivo X, SJP Sauvignon Blanc – at a star-studded garden party in Manhattan.
Invivo’s New Zealand founders Rob Cameron and Tim Lightbourne were on hand for the launch, posing with the actress for the cameras (above).
Earlier this year, the pair travelled from the Invivo winery in Te Kauwhata to New York to blend SJP’s wine, where she followed the same blending process a winemaker would follow.
The pair brought samples of the 2019 vintage, harvested in April from five estates in Marlborough, spanning both the Wairau and Awatere Valleys. Over a three-hour blending session, SJP and Invivo finalised the proportions from each vineyard to create the signature wine blend.
Addressing a crowd at the launch that included her husband, actor Matthew Broderick, and Bravo host Andy Cohen, SJP said: “I knew very little about the industry, but we were happy drinkers of wine. It has been a joyful, informative experience. I couldn’t be more proud of this.”
“Eleven years ago, it was tough for us to sell six bottles of wine,” added Lightbourne.
“We bring people together, and that’s how we got to this project,” said Cameron. And then everyone toasted with—and to—the fruits of the blending process we sat in on a few months ago.”
The actress has also been signing bottles of SJP Sauvignon Blanc for fans at New York liquor stores, with hundreds of people queuing to meet the actress and try her wine.
“This is a seriously drinkable Sauvignon Blanc that will continue to develop for up to seven years,” said Cameron.
“Sarah Jessica loves the fruit purity of Sauvignon Blanc but wanted to make a wine that has some weight behind it. The result is a beautifully well-balanced drop – think flavours of grapefruit, honey-suckle flower, passionfruit and citrus zest balanced with an acidic spine – it’s not a typical Marlborough Sauvignon.”
SJP has also been instrumental in both naming the wine and designing the label. The X and the comma after it, is an intentional and personal touch, referencing her signature email and Instagram post signoff: “X, SJ.”
She hand-painted the X on the original label and found the teal paint to match the exact shade of one of her favorite satin shoe colourways, “Hamilton”, from her SJP Collection label.
The actress took to the stage of the BlogHer Creator’s Summit in Brooklyn earlier this week to discuss her creation, where she confirmed she’s a huge fan of the wine.
“I’m mad for it,” she said. “I was terrified I wouldn’t be able to say that when the first bottle arrived. But it’s delectable!”
Before leaving the stage, the actress toasted the crowd with a glass of her SJP Sauvignon Blanc, wishing each of the women there the fulfillment of their dreams.
The actress also posed on the steps of her home with a bottle of the wine, posted the photograph on Instagram with the message: “Meet @invivoxsjp! Just arrived from New Zealand. Cleared customs. Knockin’ on my door.
“It can be on your stoop, in your fridge, on your table, in your hands as of now!”
Aussie release for SJP wine
While her wine launched in New York, it will also be available in 20 states in the US, plus it will arrive in Australia, UK, Ireland and Japan next month.
In Australia SJP Sauvignon Blanc will be available exclusively through BWS and wine retailer Cellarmasters.
Christine Ricketts, Cellar Director at Cellarmasters, said it is a delicious wine and believes customers will adore it.
“From the moment of opening this wine, the lifted tropical fruits flow out of the bottle,” she said.
“Passionfruit, grapefruit, dried grasses are balanced by zesty acidity on the lingering finish in this dry wine – delicious!” she said.
In spring 2020, a Rosé wine from the South of France, will join the Sarah Jessica Parker wine collection. This will be a new vintage 2019 blend from grapes harvested this September.
The celebrity partnership is not uncharted territory for the growing Invivo & Co which also produces a successful wine brand with UK talk show host Graham Norton. His brand debuted in 2014 selling 12,000 bottles in the first year and today sells 3.5 million bottles globally.
Invivo X, SJP Sauvignon Blanc will retail for $25 and will be available at Cellarmasters.com.au and BWS stores
