1. Diamond Estates – Dan Akroyd, actor
Set on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, the location of this well-regarded vineyard is jaw-droppingly awesome. Their ice-wine is particularly fascinating. It's an extremely difficult wine to make, using grapes that have been frozen on the vine, thus exciting to see process.
2. ANTA – Antonio Banderas, actor
ANTA Winery is very, very remote, tucked away in the heart of the Ribera in Northern Spain. There are very few towns in the area. It’s barren with bright red-orange soils that stretch for miles. The winery looks like a silver spaceship sitting in the middle of bright red ochre soil of Mars.
3. Monticello Estate – Thomas Jefferson, Founding Father
As well as signing the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson is also regarded as America's first distinguished viticulturist. His estate in Virginia doesn't make great wine but the setting is gorgeous with wild horses and long perfectly-kept grounds that lead up to his bizarre house packed with tens of wild forward-thinking inventions.
4. Podere Castorani – Jarno Trulli, former F1 driver
Tucked away in the remote but beautiful Italian Adriatic Coast region of Northern Italy, this vineyard takes some getting to. We were picked up in Pescara, the nearest town and some 35 miles away, and then had to hop into another 4WD to take us up muddy slopes and unmarked roads. Luckily, Jarno's wines are worth the effort.
5. Kamen Estate – Robert Kamen, scriptwriter
The man behind The Karate Kid and Taken is also responsible for some seriously good wines. Set high on a jet black volcanic mountain in Sonomo, California, the wines are
all the more impressive when you consider that he had to dynamite and drill the hard-as-steel lava to make a vineyard.
Celebrity Vineyards, From Napa to Tuscany in Search of Great Wine by Nick Wise is published by Omnibus Press and can be ordered on Amazon now.
