Carrie Bradshaw always needed a glass of Cosmo. But the actress who played the iconic character from Sex and the City favours wine a lot more. “I have a glass of wine after work, literally, every single day. Every. Single. Day,” emphasises Sarah Jessica Parker.
The 54-year-old style-setter deserves every satisfying sip during her downtime too. Alongside her illustrious acting career, she’s also a well-established entrepreneur, finding a firm footing in the competitive shoe market and having the nose for sniffing out several winning scents. Now, she’s putting her palate to the test in making world-class wines as well.
With the help of the dynamic team behind Kiwi winery Invivo & Co, Parker is launching a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc globally next month. She’s not just putting her name to the wine but has been involved in all aspects of its production, from label design to winemaking decisions, including having the final say on the final blend.
“While I’m new to winemaking, the Invivo fellows generously taught, showed and shared as much of the art and science of their business and hopefully I have absorbed some of their Kiwi confidence,” says Parker. “I have thoroughly enjoyed the collaboration — every part of the process from our initial conversations discussing wine styles, to the creative process on the brand and label design and of course, the Sauvignon Blanc blending session; it’s all been one exciting step after another. And a thrilling education in the business of winemaking.”
Parker is also a shareholder in the wine company, founded by former schoolmates Tim Lightbourne and Rob Cameron, where celebrity collaborations are not uncommon. British talk show host Graham Norton has injected his name and zest to several Invivo line of wines and most recently, released his sixth vintage Sauvignon Blanc with the Kiwi producers using grapes from Marlborough, New Zealand.
The Invivo X, Sarah Jessica Parker Sauvignon Blanc similarly utilises samples of the 2019 vintage that was harvested in April from different sub-regions of Marlborough. Over a three-hour session in New York City a couple of mounts ago, Parker and the Invivo team finalised the proportions from each vineyard to create the exact blending recipe used in the new wine.
The result is described by Cameron, Invivo’s director and chief winemaker, as, “Lifted notes of grapefruit, honey suckle flower, passionfruit and citrus zest. The palate is expansive and leads with a wall of sweet-scented fruits and a soft, but balanced acid spine.”
Naturally, the actress-turned-shoe designer has also been instrumental in crafting the name and label of the wine. The X and the comma directly before her name are an intentional and personal touch, referencing her signature email and Instagram post signoff: “X, SJ.”
Parker also hand-painted the X on the original label and found the teal paint to match the exact shade of one of her favourite satin shoe colourways called Hamilton from her SJP Collection line.
Lightbourne is clearly smitten by the multi-talented artist. The 40-something-year-old co-founder states, “It has been a pleasure working with SJP. It’s fantastic how hands-on she’s been with the whole process and she has a great palate too! Within minutes into the blending session, she was picking up subtle differences between the samples. It’s a privilege for us, two old school friends from New Zealand and our winery, to work with her. We look forward to a long-term partnership.”
Cameron agrees, and adds, “This is ultimately SJP’s palate and preferences. She loves the fruit purity of Sauvignon Blanc but wanted a wine that had some weight behind it. It was our aim from the get-go to create this wine that she loves and wants to drink and share with friends.”