Jolie-Pitt Star Power Propels New Provence Rosé

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have released their first wine, a 2012 rosé from their Provence estate, Château Miraval. In a blind tasting of a flight of Provençal rosés at Wine Spectator’s New York office, the wine was refined and elegant, with pure flavors of dried red berry and tangerine, and a focused finish with flint and spice notes. It scored 90 points, or outstanding, on Wine Spectator's 100-point scale.

The Miraval bottling, made in a partnership with the Perrin family of Château de Beaucastel and featuring a distinctive Champagne punt design, can lay claim to being the most anticipated release of a rosé ever seen. The first 6,000 bottles of the wine sold out within five hours after being offered online in France earlier this month. Currently, the wine is being offered in the U.S. at pre-arrival prices from $23 to $28 at select wine shops and will probably retail for about $30 a bottle. About 15,000 cases will be imported, with the first arriving in April.

The Côtes de Provence rosé is a blend of red grapes Cinsault, Grenache and Syrah and white grape Rolle (aka Vermentino). It was made using a combination of direct pressing and the saignée method and vinified primarily in stainless vats. Roughly 5 percent was fermented in oak barrels to give the wine added richness.

According to Perrin & Fils general manager Marc Perrin, Pitt and Jolie participated in the blending sessions for the wine and also helped in the design of the label and the bottle. "It is not a celebrity wine—it is a great terroir and we produce a family wine, so that's why we are there," Perrin told Wine Spectator. The Perrins will distribute the wine from the partnership, which is called “Jolie-Pitt & Perrin,” and will split the profits with the couple. A Provence white is planned for release this summer and a red next year. All grapes for all the wines are grown using organic techniques.

The 1,000-acre estate, which includes about 150 acres of vineyards, is located in the village of Correns and formerly made a rosé known as Pink Floyd, which garnered solid ratings. The previous owners built a studio at the château and the British group recorded their famed rock opera The Wall there in 1979. Pitt and Jolie purchased the 35-room estate for an estimated $60 million last year; they had leased it since 2008 with an option to buy.

The new rosé arrives in April.