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CLIFF TOPS THE CHARTS

Published:  23 July, 2008

Veteran pop star Sir Cliff Richard has chalked up the wine release of the year, with the success of the debut vintage of his Portuguese wine, Vida Nova - first seen on the Harpers stand at the LIWSF. Tesco released 3,000 bottles of the red wine on its website on 12 August, and 24 hours later all 500 six-bottle cases (at 45.54) were sold out. Carolyn Brady of Tesco.com said: The response is absolutely staggering. We could have sold the wine ten times over.' Vida Nova is now the fastest-selling product ever on Tesco.com, knocking the DVD release of Lord of the Rings into second place. Waitrose had a similar result when it offered 1,200 bottles on its website on 15 August - they sold out within 12 hours. Tim Stanley-Clarke, who has been working closely on the project with Sir Cliff, winemaker David Baverstock and viticulturist Dr Richard Smart, told Harpers he was amazed and delighted' with the response. Although, based on the quality of the wine and the extraordinary Cliff-factor, we knew it was going to sell well,' he said. Only 27,000 bottles of the wine - grown in Sir Cliff's own vineyard in the Algarve, and a blend of Shiraz and the traditional Aragonez, Trincadeira and Mourvdre - were produced in 2001, of which 24,000 are for sale in the UK. Carol Hall, president of Cliff Guaranteed Fan Club, said: Ever since they heard that Cliff was producing a wine, the fans have been desperate to find out where to buy it.' The wine is expected to be stocked in the major multiples from the end of August. Waitrose told Harpers it expects its entire stock of 6,000 bottles to last no longer than a week. Stanley-Clarke said Sir Cliff hopes to more than double production over the next three years with the planting of a new vineyard and the building of a new winery. He also urges Sir Cliff fans to drink the wine, rather than hoard it as a collector's item. Cliff and I would urge people to drink it, rather than put it on the mantelpiece next to their picture of Cliff, although it will keep for another three years.'

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