Celebrity winemaker creates exclusive range for luxury hotel chain
Hot on the heels of an airline collaboration and celebrity wine launch, one of the hottest names in Sonoma winemaking has now partnered with a luxury hotel chain. db reports.
One of the most talked-about winemakers in California has ramped up his presence in the last 12 months, striking deals with everyone from A-list celebs to global airlines in order to get his wines in front of the right audience.
Last May, Jesse Katz produced the wine for Hollywood actress Jessica Biel’s Poet & Prophet wine label. Katz, who is owner and winemaker of Aperture Cellars in Healdsburg, California, had previously gifted Biel a barrel of wine to mark her wedding to musician Justin Timberlake in 2012, and having seen how well the wine had aged since then, suggested the star use it as “a jumping-off point” for a commercial collection.
Just months later, Katz announced a partnership with United Airlines, which would see Aperture’s Cabernet Sauvignon poured in business class cabins onboard the carrier’s international flights. Calling the collaboration “a true privilege” Katz explained that sharing his flagship wine with United travellers would enable him to “align the elevated standards of world-class wine with the refined hospitality of global travel, celebrating the connections and lifelong memories they inspire.”
Hotel expansion
Now the winemaker is continuing his hospitality journey by making an exclusive wine range for a prestigious hotel chain which owns seven properties spanning locations including Montana, Hawaii and South Carolina.
Montage International launched its private collection of Montage Estate wines in December 2025, featuring three expressions made using grapes grown at Montage Healdsburg in Sonoma. In fact, Katz had been involved with the project years before construction even began on the Montage Healdsburg property. With estate wines always a key part of the hotel’s future plans, Katz was commissioned in 2019 to design and plant its vineyard, allowing him control over the quality of the end result. Into the ground went Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Sauvignon Blanc across the estate’s 15.5 acres.
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“When you’re driving to the Montage property, you’ll see all these beautiful hillside vineyards on the eastern side,” Katz said. “Those are the crème de la crème, some of the best sites right there in the heart of Alexander Valley.”
Exclusive Jesse Katz wine
Initial wines, a Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon released under brand name The Surveyer, were made available to hotel guests several years ago. However, last month Katz debuted the official Montage Estate wines, which again are only available within the bars and restaurants of Montage hotels, and those of its sister hotel chain Pendry (both are owned by Montage International).
The debut is the 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon, available by the glass or bottle, as well as by mini-bottles found in guests’ mini bars. Two further wines – a rosé and a Sauvignon Blanc are expected to follow this spring.
“From the very beginning, our shared vision was to create wines that embody the spirit of Sonoma; expressive, elegant, and deeply rooted in the land,” Katz said. “The Montage Estate Vineyard is one of the most striking sites I’ve ever worked with, and the resulting wines reflect that sense of place with energy, depth, and balance.”
Aperture Cellars is becoming an increasingly big fish in California, having acquired vineyards across the state including hectares in Sonoma, Alexander Valley, Geyserville, Clarksburg, and Bennett Valley. As such, Jesse Katz wine is beginning to look like a golden ticket for businesses looking for an edge over their competitors.
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