Watch our Instagram Reel to get an inside look at the This Life launch with Norah Jones at Electric Lady Studios in NYC!
Norah Jones knows that lots of celebrities get into the wine business. She just never imagined she would be one of them. “It would have never occurred to me to do something like this,” shares the American singer-songwriter, who has sold over 53 million albums since her 2002 breakout, Come Away With Me.
Just days before leaving for her summer Visions tour of Europe—based on her ninth studio album, for which she was awarded a Grammy earlier this year—Jones, 46, launched her new line of This Life wines. (The wines are named after a song on Jones’ 2020 album, Pick Me Up Off the Floor.) This Life is a partnership with Maison Wessman, a winery located in Bergerac, in Southwest France, in which Jones is now a part-owner.
“Sometimes you get tapped on the shoulder to do something interesting. Wine is a whole new world for me, and it’s really fun to do something different,” Jones explains, adding that it all began with a bottle of rosé.
Last summer, a mutual friend connected Jones with Icelandic businessman Robert Wessman, who has spent more than two decades developing his wine estate, Maison Wessman, based in a twelfth-century castle. A longtime fan of her music, Wessman blended a bottle of rosé from the best lots in his cellar and sent it to Jones as an enticement to become a partner in the winery. “What can I say? I drank the rosé and it was really delicious,” Jones laughs.
This Life: A French Rosé and Crémant Sparkler
The two inaugural This Life cuvées—a 2024 rosé sourced from southern France ($17) and a sparkling brut of Chardonnay from Languedoc’s esteemed Limoux appellation ($25)—reflect the style of wine Jones likes to drink. “I’m certainly no wine expert, but over the years I’ve learned what I like and what tastes good to me,” Jones says of her journey as a wine lover. “In my mid-20s, I had managers take me out to dinner and order wines and I had no clue what they were, but I developed a taste for good wine.” Crisp, dry whites—Grüner Veltliner and Gavi are two favorites—and smooth reds without aggressive tannins, like Rioja, are her go-tos.
During her many European tours over the decades, she further honed her appreciation for the food and wine cultures of Italy and France in particular. “I especially love eating and drinking in the south of France. It’s hard not to have a glass of wine when eating meals like a perfect roast chicken or fresh pasta.”
Jones was involved in the blending process for both wines. (Courtesy of Maison Wessman)
Jones worked with Wessman throughout the blending process. “Norah really knows what she wants and has a great palate,” he observes. He has also commissioned famed winemaking consultant Michel Rolland to advise in Maison Wessman’s vineyards and cellar since 2016.
“I went to school for music and learned a lot cerebrally, but I play music from a place in the heart, and the blending process felt very natural in that same way,” Jones describes. “I gravitated to the flavors I liked in different [tank] samples and then we combined them” until landing on a final wine blend. She is still tinkering with the assemblage for her white and red This Life wines, which will be released next year.
From Singing “My Heart Is Drenched in Wine” to Making Her Own
Since her Come Away With Me debut, which sold over 27 million copies and earned five Grammy Awards, Jones—the daughter of Indian sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar—has become an international music icon for her signature blend of folk, jazz and pop. She is a 10-time Grammy winner and her songs have been streamed 10 billion times worldwide.
Recently, she collaborated with her friend and Visions producer, fellow songwriter and musician Leon Michels (leader of El Michels Affair and founder of several record labels). The collaborative sessions led to a song, Carry Me Away, for Michels’ upcoming album, which will be released in the fall.
Following her Visions tour in July, with stops throughout Scandinavia, northern Europe and Greece, Jones will make her way to Bergerac to finalize her blends for the next vintage. Her time at Maison Wessman will overlap with JJ Julius Son—the lead singer and driving force behind Kaleo, an Icelandic rock band—who has also partnered with Wessman to create a line of wines. (Wessman and Julius Son grew up in the same small village in Iceland.)
This Life is launching with a rosé and sparkler, with a red and white in the works. (Courtesy of Maison Wessman)
Music and Wine, a Natural Partnership
“Music is very much a part of Maison Wessman—we have a grand piano in the château and often stay up playing and singing very late into the night,” Wessman remarks. His vision for the growing estate includes guest houses, organic vegetable gardens and weekly live music performances. In mid-June, he opened a new restaurant helmed by chef Thierry Marx, who holds two Michelin stars. “We are building a small eco-village. We want this place to be very lively, an attraction in the region; we are making serious wines but we want wine to be fun.”
With production of just over one million bottles, Maison Wessman is the largest producer in Southwest France. Located just around 15 miles from St.-Emilion in Bordeaux, the estate’s vineyards feature similar soil types, and Wessman believes they have the potential for similar quality. Wessman’s estate vineyard holdings also include two single vineyards, Saint Cernan and Bugalys, in the high-elevation Limoux region in Languedoc, which is known for top-quality Chardonnay and sparkling wines. Limoux is also the source of Jones’ new crémant.
More than a few bottles of This Life bubbly will be consumed on tour, she predicts. “I drink less than I used to on tour,” Jones confesses. But she still enjoys the ritual of drinking wine after each show. “It’s really fun to wind down and share wine with the crew and band. A bottle of wine is always very valuable backstage.” What did she drink to celebrate her 2025 Grammy win for Visions? “To be honest, I drank a margarita.”