Today, celebrities and best friends actress Nina Dobrev and dancer Julianne Hough—of Dancing with the Stars fame—announced the launch of their vegan wine brand Fresh Vine Wines. Crafted in Napa, CA, the wines are made without animal ingredients and fining agents often found in wine such as albumin (derived from egg whites) or isinglass (derived from fish bladders). “We’re the biggest animal lovers,” Dobrev and Hough told VegNews. “We can’t walk down the street without stopping to pet every single dog along the way, so it’s incredibly important for us to align with companies that share our point of view. We also want to be doing our part to be good citizens and help protect the environment through the use of no animal ingredients or processes.”

In partnership with award-winning Napa Valley winemaker, Jamey Whetstone, the duo worked to create the vegan wine brand over the course of two years with the mission of filling a gap in the wine industry for good-tasting, low-calorie, and fully vegan wine fit for active lifestyles. “Julianne and I bonded over having similar core values and lifestyles. We’re both incredibly busy, but we find time to not only prioritize work but find it very important to enjoy life to its fullest,” Dobrev told VegNews. “When we decided to venture into the wine industry we wanted to create something that reflected who we are, and hopefully to bring people together in this extremely uncertain time. We both think it’s incredibly important to enjoy every single moment with the people you love and find connection through enjoying the simple pleasures in life. That for us, is laughing and indulging in our favorite tastes. That to us, is Fresh Vine wine.”

All Fresh Vine Wines are using proprietary natural winemaking processes with high and low fermentable sugar grapes that are hand-selected in California in collaboration with leading wine grape growers and quality-tested both in-house and by experienced third-party testers to ensure optimal flavor. The first three wines, California Cabernet Sauvignon ($21.89), Pinot Noir ($18.99), and Chardonnay ($17.99), are now available through Fresh Vine Wine’s website. Additionally, California Rosé ($14.89) and Limited Reserve Napa Cabernet ($80) are available for pre-order and will debut this spring/summer and fall, respectively. 

Celebrity vegan winemakers

Dobrev and Hough join a growing list of celebrities that have recently gotten into the vegan wine business. Last summer, actress and author Cameron Diaz and entrepreneur Katherine Power released Avaline, a line of vegan wine made with organic grapes now available for purchase in 43 states. Last year, British supermodel Cara Delevingne and her sisters Poppy and Chloe also got into the vegan wine industry with the launch of prosecco brand Della Vite, available in two varieties: Della-Vite Prosecco Superiore (DOCG) and Della-Vite Prosecco Treviso (DOC). 

A long time vegetarian, supermodel Christie Brinkley is also a vinter and got her Bellissima Prosecco brand vegan certified in 2019. 

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