“We realized early on this isn’t a celebrity brand,” says Jon Bon Jovi with a smile and soft chuckle as he leans back into the couch. “It’s a family business. Otherwise, I would have called it ‘Bed of Roses Rosé,’ and put cute pictures of me writing songs on the back.”
The Grammy-winning musician, of course, is talking about Hampton Water, the rosé brand he started with son Jesse Bongiovi back in 2016. It’s made in southern France’s Languedoc region by a rock star of another sort, winemaker Gérard Bertrand. Indeed, rather than Bon Jovi himself, a woman “diving into Hampton Water” adorns the label of the salmon-hued pink wine.
The family business approach seems to be working—Hampton Water is now selling faster than singles from a platinum pop album. In both 2021 and 2022, it was the top-performing brand in terms of bottles sold on retail giant Wine.com, beating out nearly 1,000 other rosé labels. It outpaced other heavy hitters, including Château d’Esclans’ Whispering Angel (the second best-selling rosé on Wine.com), Brad Pitt’s Chateau Miraval and Wölffer Estate Vineyard’s Summer in a Bottle Côtes de Provence Rosé.
“We’re the fastest growing rosé in the United States right now,” says Jesse Bongiovi, a glass of Hampton Water in hand. The claim checks out with retail-tracking service AC Nielsen. Of the top 10 rosé brands in the Premium Price Tier, which includes bottles priced between $16 and $25, Hampton Water is growing the fastest. It snagged 70% growth in 2023 over the same period last year.
But how did the fastest growing rosé in America come to be? And where does the duo see it going?
From Garage Gigs to Arena Shows
In 2016, after spending many a summer in the Hamptons, Jesse Bongiovi headed into his senior year of college with an idea: Hampton Water, an easy-drinking rosé that embodied the summer destination’s breezy lifestyle.
“I kept bugging him and bugging him,” says Jesse Bongiovi of getting his father onboard. Bongiovi’s rationale: Simply put, people would love it. “Then [my dad] said, ‘Look, go take that college degree and put it to use. I have a day job. Go figure it out,’” he recalls. “And so, I did exactly that. I designed the label, bottle and came up with the concept of the Hampton life.”
In 2017, the duo teamed up with renowned French winemaker Bertrand. “We had been quite familiar with Gérard’s wines because they’re sold in East Hampton, where our home is,” Bon Jovi previously told Wine Enthusiast. Father and son were introduced to him via a mutual friend, and the rest is history. But, of course, it’s one thing to make a product. It’s an entirely different thing to market and sell it to consumers.
“You talk to an average 25-year-old person living in New York City and you go, ‘And what kind of notes are you getting on this?’ They go, ‘Pink? What are you talking about?’” says Bongiovi with a smile. “For us, that’s the thing that creates that intimidation.”
Social media provided a solution. “We knew that to speak to the consumer the way we wanted, we had to be social first,” says Jesse. The brand currently has more than 560,000 followers across different social media platforms—most notably on TikTok, where the brand focuses most of its efforts.
One look at Hampton Water’s TikTok page, and it’s quite evident this is a wine you’re supposed to have fun drinking. For instance, instead of videos discussing terroir or set in stuffy tasting rooms, viewers find playful clips of people cradling giant bottles of Hampton Water, or of the family spotting their blush offerings on hit shows like Vanderpump Rules and answering consumers’ pressing questions.
Like, just how the hell do you open the bottle’s Vinolock top? The video was prompted by a text message Bon Jovi received from a friend reading, “God damn this top!”
It’s actually simple to open, Bon Jovi notes with a smile. “Pop the top,” he advises.
The duo has also tried to neutralize wine’s intimidation factor by encouraging consumers to use Hampton Water in cocktails like the margarita, Paloma, spritzes or any of the other recipes on their website. The reasoning? To bypass the admonishing vibe of “You don’t put ice in it. Don’t make a cocktail with it. That is not how it is done,’” Bongiovi explains. After all, it doesn’t matter where or how you enjoy Hampton Water.
“The Hamptons is a place where you can aspire to be, even if you’ve never been there,” says Bon Jovi. “You could be in a kiddie pool in Cleveland and go, ‘I’m in the Hamptons right now. I’m closing my eyes and I’m going to have fun with my friends.’”
Still Just Halfway There
When asked when they knew that Hampton Water had in fact become very real, Bon Jovi immediately responds “the credibility.” One year into the project, they turned on the television to see Hampton Water being discussed on MSNBC. “And we were like ‘What the fuck?’”
Yet, despite the brand’s success, the duo agrees they are only halfway there (sorry, not sorry).
“The very first [Hampton Water] party that we threw was so awesome,” says Bongiovi. “It was like, ‘We made it!’ And then you start trying to get into restaurants in New York City and they go, ‘And who are you?’” Every year, however, he sees progress. “But again, we’re not fooling ourselves. There’s still a long way to go.”
His father echoes this sentiment, comparing the brand’s trajectory to that of a rock band. “They’re still on their first arena tour. This isn’t a stadium front yet. There are no Grammys yet,” Bon Jovi says. “This is still, ‘Okay, you know our name.’ You have to have more than one hit single to have a career. And that’s where I think the brand is at. They’ve had their first couple hit singles, now it takes a lot more.”
So far, the brand doesn’t plan to branch out into the growing ready-to-drink (RTD) space or start producing other bottlings. For now, the duo’s plan is to focus on their current “hit single”—Hampton Water—and lean into increasing demand from new-to-them consumer regions, like Texas, Chicago, Missouri and other inland areas.
Of course, there’s always more brand building to be done.
“We’re in Michelin-starred restaurants in New York and Los Angeles, but unless the consumer comes back for that second bottle, the rest of this is like a Rolling Stone review,” says Bon Jovi, gesturing to a pile of wine publications on the table before him. “Who gives a shit?”
“Tell me when you sell out the stadium,” he continues. “And tell me when you do it for 40 years. Then you can talk to me about a story. Until then, you’re just another little flash in the pan. It takes work every year.”
Hampton Water 2020 Rosé (Languedoc)
Lovely top notes of peony and baby’s breath grace the bouquet of this rosé, with supporting notes of ripe melon, white cherry and strawberry at the core. The palate is medium in weight but well balanced, with a sweet orange flavor and bright acidic thread that keeps the momentum moving from the fruit-fueled palate to the vibrant, refreshing finish. 91 Points — Lauren Buzzeo
$20 Total Wine & MoreMake the Rosé Paloma
Recipe courtesy of Hampton Water
Ingredients
Instructions
Place sugar in a dish. Moisten the rim of a rocks glass with the grapefruit wedge. Roll rim of the glass in the sugar to coat. Add ice and all remaining ingredients to glass. Stir until blended and garnish with grapefruit wedge.
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Last Updated: July 31, 2023
