Drop of Sunshine Wine Debuts In The Sunshine State

New wines are introduced to Florida and the U.S. consumer constantly and I love discovering them. Especially before some of my wine loving friends. It's all about the bragging rights and I'm not ashamed to admit it. It happened again this week. Drop of Sunshine Wine debuts in The Sunshine State and I got a sneak peek before it officially goes on sale.

I'm sharing all details for Wine Wednesday.

First, I'll name drop. Reese Witherspoon. No, I did not have a glass of wine with her. However, this new brand is connected to her.

Drop of Sunshine was created in partnership with Candle Media's Hello Sunshine. It's a multi-channel media company founded by Witherspoon. It is designed to celebrate women.

A division of Treasury Wine Estates led by business woman Sarah Bakx and a female-led wine team collaborated Witherspoon's company to add wine to the growing platform.

She said, " Our female-led Drop of Sunshine team collaborated with Hello Sunshine to create a line of engaging and vibrant wines that tell a story about the journeys that shape who we are and celebrate the drops of joy we feel along the way."

The wine's official launch is this weekend (October 5th) at the second annual Shine Away event in Los Angeles. Initially,  Drop of Sunshine will be available at select restaurants and resorts. Nationwide availability begins in February 2025.

I sampled it at a trade show in Naples Monday wtih Treasurey Wine representatives.

The wines are fun rather than complex, and affordable. Plus there is a mission behind them which I love.

The first of the three wines is a California Brut Sparkling Rosé. It has lots of strawberry and red fruit. Next, a chardonnay that is a little tart and has lots of stone fruit. Finally, the red blend. It is a lighter style with a mash up of berries and darker fruits.

The sparkling and red blends are $25 , the chardonnay is $20.

Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine brand tells stories across all platforms, all shining a light on women and helping them chart paths forward. Hello Sunshine is also home to Reese's Book Club. Start looking for it at Florida restaurants and clubs this month. Cheers.

I know National Rosé Day is in June. But there is also an entire month dedicated to the fresh pink wine. That month being August. So I threw a party. Here is what we found, 9 sippers for a Rose All Day end of summer soiree.

Every August, I have a Rose All Day Soiree where we pop the corks on rosé wines from around the world. I prepare appetizers I think will work with the wines and so do many friends who attend. We had everything from prosciutto cups and stuffed grape leaves to chicken salad and mini chocolate cheesecake bites.

I had almost a dozen bottles of rosé and friends also brought some to share. This year, we went through 18 bottles. In addition, there were some reds, whites and brut Champagne, but we won't add those interlopers to the tally.

It was all in the name of research of course. I wanted some material for Wine Wednesday. Such a sacrifice. And what a horrible friend to force others to participate. All kidding aside, it was a lot of fun trying so many different kinds of rosé side by side.

The ones made from pinot noir had a more savory touch while those from grenache were more fruity. Those are two common grapes found in rosé.

First,  VARA Silverhead Brut Rosado was a surprise favorite. Surprise to many because it was from New Mexico. Most guests did not expect this blend of 75% Syrah and 25% Chardonnay to wow them. The syrah gave it a beautiful color and great body. It has some of the fruit characteristics you would expect, like raspberry and strawberry. $28

Miami Vices was another big hit. It caused lots of reminiscing from the good old days of the '80's.

Always Drink Responsibly