I'm a celebrity - get me a vineyard!

Soon after England's ignominious Ashes defeat at the hands of the Aussies this year, I received a note from Shane Warne. The letter, ok press release, told me how much Warney was looking forward to my trying the new wines about to be released under his own label. I never did get to taste the wines, and not long after he made me the offer the Aussie spinmeister became somewhat tied up with the tabloids.

As a new book called Celebrity Sells suggests, we are pretty indifferent when it comes to celebrity endorsements. When Leonard Rossiter spilt his Cinzano over Joan Collins, for instance, no-one could remember what product was being promoted. Maybe it should come as no surprise then to see celebrities going the next step and slapping their egos on a wine label. Sting bought a 40-hectare Tuscan estate this year with the intention, in between walking the dog and playing Bach on the guitar, of making a chianti to be called I Serrestori. Sir Cliff Richard meanwhile has come up with the second vintage of his Portuguese tinto, Vida Nova, produced for some reason in the Algarve, better known for its tourism than its wines.

Post-Shane, the latest celebrity cricketer's venture is BMW, a partnership between Ian Botham, the flamboyant Australian winemaker Geoff Merrill, and Bob Willis. It's not hard to imagine both Botham and Willis enthusing about the product because the two are genuinely passionate about their wines. Both Willis and the magnum-loving Botham have impressive cellars and when David Gower wasn't buzzing cricket pitches in his light aircraft, R & R consisted of zipping off to the Hunter, Barossa or nearest wine-growing valley and sampling Australia's liquid bush tucker.

BMW has nothing to do with the eponymous car, but might the trio be concerned about possible legal action? "We need all the pre-publicity we can get," says Ian, "and we promise not to make cars." Both wines are in fact excellent. The 2002 BMW Chardonnay is a big, rich, buttery McLaren Vale / Coonawarra blend with lashings of vanilla oak and ripe, rich peachy flavours undercut by a balancing streak of citrusy acidity. The 2001 BMW Coonawarra McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon is also good, boasting a rich, dare I say beefy, core of cassis fruitiness, which should improve over two to three years. Both are available at £53.94 for a case of six, through Tesco.com.

Like cricketers, golfers too seem keen to jump on the wine wagon. Following the success of Great White Shark, Greg Norman's wine label, South Africa's Ernie Els has scored a spectacular hole-in-one with his red called, what else, Ernie Els. This opulent and stylishly put together 2001 Bordeaux-style Stellenbosch blend from Rust-en-Vrede (Lay & Wheeler for details: 0845 330 1855) recently garnered a rare 5-star award in the new 2004 edition of the John Platter Guide to South African wines.

Now, our very own Nick Faldo has teed off with a cabernet sauvignon, shiraz and sauvignon blanc, under the Nick Faldo Selection brand (£9.99 a bottle, when buying a case, Bibendum, London NW1; 020-7449 4120). Faldo is not just a pretty label. These are generously fruity, well-made wines from the respected Katnook Estate in Coonawarra. I really like the 2002 Coonawarra Sauvignon Blanc, a classic, aromatic Aussie sauvignon full of juicy gooseberry zestiness; and the 2001 Coonawarra Shiraz, a serious but decadently enjoyable wine with a touch of vanilla and richly flavoured, brambly fruitiness. This is clearly just a beginning. Keep an eye out for the Full Monty and the Cheryl Tweedy Punch.