EXCLUSIVE: Meghan Markle's Wine Blasted by Expert Tasters — 'It's too High in Alcohol' and 'Tastes Like It Wasn't Handcrafted'
Meghan Markle just can't catch a break.
Sept. 10 2025, Published 11:00 a.m. ET
Meghan Markle's first venture into winemaking has been met with sharp criticism from expert tasters – with complaints her debut rosé is too high in alcohol and feels more like a marketing exercise than a handcrafted product, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The 44-year-old Duchess of Sussex has launched a $30 bottle of Napa Valley rosé under her lifestyle label As Ever, blending cabernet sauvignon, syrah, grenache, and mourvèdre from the Fairwinds Estate Winery in Calistoga.
Wine Experts Offer Mixed Reviews on Duchess' Bottle
Markle launched a $30 rosé under her As Ever lifestyle label.
Markle, who first wrote about her passion for wine on her now-defunct blog The Tig, has pitched the launch as a personal project.
But a panel of three sommeliers who sampled the bottle gave mixed reviews.
Dana Beninati, 37, a classically trained chef, sommelier, and host of Dine with Dana, was unimpressed.
She said: "When I take my first sip, it's hot on the finish, not in temperature but in alcohol content. I get that heat on the nose, and there's a slight burn in the aftertaste as well. All this indicates a high-alcohol wine.
"That's really surprising to me because consumers nowadays are generally looking for drinks that are lower in alcohol and sugar."
Experts Note Harsh Alcohol Finish in Wine
Gambrelle Snyder warns the rosé leaves a fiery aftertaste.
"Overall to me, this is a wine made by expert marketers, not by Meghan. It doesn't taste like something that's been handcrafted from family-owned vineyards," he added.
"It doesn't feel thoughtful; it doesn't feel like I'm supporting a small family-owned winery. "I think that a bottle of 2024 As Ever or a bottle of 2030 As Ever will taste exactly the same." Beninati gave the wine six out of 10.
Gambrelle Snyder, 46, a sommelier with a diploma from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, also noted issues with its booze content and finish.
She said: "There's a little bit of fire on the finish from the alcohol if you let it linger in your mouth too long. I'm not a fan of that. You want all of the flavors to melt together. You want them to combine and play off of each other, compliment each other.
"When you take that final sip of rosé, you should get the fruit flavors, and I got a little bit of heat on the back. "It's not the greatest thing to have that be the sensation of the finish in your mouth."
Supporter Says $30 Rosé Is a 'Steal'
Sommelier Dana Beninati rates Markle’s wine six out of ten.
She admitted $30 feels like a "fair price point" for Markle's wine, but stressed: "I'd like to see the ABV (alcohol content) be a tad lower." Snyder also scored it six out of 10.
But not all the feedback was negative. Crystl Faye Horton, 48, former wine director at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse in New York, was enthusiastic.
She gushed: "There's so much going on flavor-wise in this wine. There's wild strawberries, there's cherry, there's quince, there are these sweet baking spices that you would smell when you walked into grandma's kitchen.
"A lot of celebrities just slap a label on a bottle, but this really feels like somebody wanted to make this wine with intention… this is not a porch pounder, it is a serious wine. For $30, it's a steal."
Rosé Launch Coincided With Princess Diana's Birthday
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Critics accused Markle of hijacking Diana’s legacy with launch date.
But reviews online have also been largely negative, with one source telling us: "Meghan is a diva, and any criticism will sting." One of the mocking reviews online branded the ex-actress' plonk "Frog's p---."
Markle has also been slated for releasing her rosé on July 1, which was what would have been tragic Princess Diana's 64th birthday.
The move drew considerable backlash and was labeled as insensitive and a "hijacking" of Diana's legacy by critics and royal experts.
Others said it was especially tasteless due to Di's death being linked to a drink-driving chauffeur.
