The logos on Mary J. Blige’s Sun Goddess wine bottle shine like a spinning gold record, a beautiful reminder that whatever Mary touches turns into gold.
After a stunning track record – multi-platinum albums, Grammy Awards, and Academy Award nominations– the Queen of Hip Hop Soul took her passion for Italian wine and started producing vintages with an Italian vineyard whose bottles have flown with the Pope.
This summer, Mary J. Blige and Fantinel Winery, released a pale pink Italian Pinot Grigio Ramato and Sauvignon Blanc. Mary decided to name the wine in honor of what her mother saw in her.
“The name SUN GODDESS evokes powerful childhood memories that I carry with me today. I’ve always loved the sun, and as a child I always tried to capture the sun’s warmth and energy,” she wrote on the website. “It was magical to me, and it’s with that spirit, that my mom began calling me “Sun Goddess.”
A trip to the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Northeastern Italy at the peak of harvest changed everything for Mary, who had long been a connoisseur of the “freshness, minerality and purity” of white wines. She traveled there after a “dear friend” encouraged her to visit top producer Marco Fantinel. Walking the vineyards and tasting the grapes with the Fantinel family led her to believe they were the right fit.
Marco Fantinel described the classic process for making Mary’s Pinot Grigio Ramato and complimented their early success– the wine has already earned an accolade.
“We decided to follow the production method carried out in ancient times in Friuli Venezia Giulia, based on a short maceration of the grapes, and to recreate the original Pinot Grigio, the PINOT GRIGIO RAMATO,” he said in a statement. “An outstanding product whose quality excellence has already been acknowledged. In fact, in the prestigious English competition “The Global Rosé Masters 2020” by The Drinks Business, Sun Goddess Pinot Grigio Ramato achieved a Gold Medal.”
Sun Goddess can be purchased at wine.com
