“Vis à vis” with Kylie Minogue, queen of world pop and producer of successful wines

“Life is full of first times, and this is my first time at a wine fair. For me, wine is a new world, very engaging, fascinating, and full of inspiration, I feel like a child, and I learn something new every day. I started making rosé wine because I liked to drink it, and one day, glass in hand, as the light filtered through the window, I told myself that I would like to produce my own rosé, and then I was lucky enough to find so many important and excellent partners, such as Zonin for the Prosecco Rosé, a fantastic producer”. Thus Kylie Minogue, international superstar of pop music (with 80 million records sold, 34 “Top 10” and 7 singles at No. 1 in the world charts), and for some time now the signature of wines that have conquered the world market, with Kylie Minogue Wines, of which they sold over 8 million bottles in 31 countries around the world, and with Prosecco Rosé being the top branded Prosecco Rosé sold in the UK, with £8.9 million in sales, a 46% increase than its closest competitor (Nielsen EPOS data in Total UK Off-Trade 52 weeks, ending 27 August 2022). And who WineNews met at “ProWein”, in Düsseldorf, in a chat in which the Australian pop star recounted her relationship with wine (together with Paul Schaafsma, CEO of Benchmark Drinks, distributor and brand developer based in London, founded in 2018, which developed the singer’s wine line).
“After a long career in music (which continues, ed), I now have more time to devote to things that fascinate and involve me deeply, such as wine. I am also in charge of the packaging”. Wines, those of Kylie Minogue, were born out of passion and aimed to reach as many people as possible, as is the recently launched alcohol-free rosé sparkling wine. “I like to think of involving as many people as possible in my world, and also to think that those who don’t drink alcohol can share a moment of celebration or a toast, without being excluded because they don’t want to or can’t drink alcohol, such as pregnant women for example”.
In any case, Kylie Minogue’s wines were a huge success, outperforming those of every other famous singer, actor, and person on the list. So, one has to wonder if there will be more news in the future. “We don't want to run before we can walk, says one, we made the first rosé just before the first lockdown, explains Kylie, and we hoped to do well, but I didn’t expect such a big success; I wanted it, but I didn’t think it was possible in such a short time. We have Italian wines like Prosecco, French wines from the Côtes de Provence and Terres du Midi, and now Australian wines from the Yarra Valley (a Pinot Noir) and Margaret River (a Chardonnay), and for me, being Australian, doing something related to my land was important”. But as Kylie Minogue said, life is full of first times, surprises, and new things…