One Last Toast to Dolly Parton

For starters, F*** Cancer. The mantra has become the rallying cry for those grieving the loss of loved ones, for focusing needed resources on promising research, for celebrating those who tamed or conquered the plague, and for giving the proverbial middle finger to a disease that claims too many lives – year after year, decade after decade, and century after century. So yes, F*** Cancer. And in late August, it took a nation’s treasure.

On August 25, the iconic Dolly Parton died from a brief battle with cancer. She is a woman from which legends are made. She was born “dirt poor,” something she referenced frequently and that served to keep her humble and grounded. Yet, from her genre-crossing success as a recording artist, to iconic roles in film, a turn on Broadway, to profoundly impactful philanthropy, she’s touched generations and hundreds of millions of lives. Not too shabby for a country gal from Appalachia.

She was also a shrewd businesswoman and entrepreneur and in 2024, released her own line of wines called aptly, Dolly Wines. Many celebrities have launched their own wine brands, become winemakers themselves, or lent their name to labels. But Dolly Parton?

She explained a bit about the inspiration for her wines in a 2024 interview in Wine Spectator. “When you think about wine, you think about friends, fun and family. We know how music brings people together. I thought, why not have a nice wine to go along with all the stuff that we have?” Why not, indeed.

Four different wines have been released by Dolly Wines – a 2023 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay for the American market and a Prosecco and a rosé in the United Kingdom. The fruit for the Pinot Noir and the Chardonnay come from California, while the Prosecco is just designated as Italy and the rosé hails from Pays d’Oc.

“It has my name on it! If I’m going to sell it, you know it’s going to be pretty good. And at least I’m going to tell you the truth about whatever it is. I’m excited about this, and I’m hoping people really like it,” Dolly shared in the same 2024 interview.

As one commenter on social media remarked, “I tried these when they were released and they were surprisingly good!” “Surprisingly” because in this world of crass capitalism, where everything is for sale, we have grown accustomed to the egomaniacal bent of those who would throw their name on absolutely anything if it garnered some coin for the coffer. But Dolly, being a person of integrity and character in all things, ensured that what her fans and admirers were to drink under her name wasn’t junk. And it’s not.

Sommelier Tonya Pitts, who leads California wine reviews for Wine Enthusiast, gave both the Pinot Noir and the Chardonnay very respectable scores – 91 and 93, respectively. When I asked Tonya for her thoughts on these wines as part of this article, she responded, “[t]he wines are quite good. They are well balanced, thoughtful, [and] the fruit source was really good as well. They overdeliver for the price point… She wanted to produce products that that were authentic, well-priced, so that anyone could enjoy them. I think she succeeded.”

Shortly after Dolly’s death, news came that the agreement for the production and distribution of her wine with Vinarchy, a global wine company based in Australia, had been mutually terminated in June.

As we go to press, it is not known if Dolly Wines will continue under a different arrangement. But the existing inventory will continue to be sold and can be found in many stores across the country. I was able to find both the Pinot Noir and the Chardonnay at my local Total Wine outlet.

While these may not be the best wines you’ll ever have, gather some friends and loved ones and crack open a bottle… I’m certain they might very well be among the most special of bottles you’ve ever had. And while you’re at it, make a toast to Dolly. Toast yourselves. And toast life.

As always, Salud!