A deep red label displays a vine of four pink roses intertwined with the word “Zetta” vertically printed on the front. This lush, retro design on the Zetta wine bottle is a tribute to St. Louis native and comedian Cedric the Entertainer‘s late mother, the remarkableRosetta Boyce Kyles, an educator and reading specialist for 30 years.He launched the wine January 4, 2022 (Kyles was born Jan. 4, 1944).
“There are fours all over [the bottle] because it’s something my mother and I have in common,” Cedric said in an interview with The St. Louis American. “She was born Jan. 4, 1944, and I was born April 24, 1964. There are a lot of fours in our life. I was number four on my Kappa [Alpha Psi] line. It’s four roses on the label; the rose is for Rosetta. Zetta was chosen as the name since another company had already used Rosetta. I wrote the messaging for the bottle just telling the story of how my mother raised my sister [Sharita Kyles Wilson] and I. We used mint green in the design to exude spring energy to go against the roses, which made everything pop out.”
Kyles lost her courageous battle with cancer in 2015.
From Cedric’s recollection of Kyles, his mother not only held a solid devotion to education, but she also appreciated fine wine.
On the website Cedric recalled how before his mother sipped her wine she constantly affirmed, “we toast our glass with a touch of class.”
“This wine is a tribute to her legacy – sophisticated, relatable, tasteful, inviting, generous – with a burst of joyful attitude at every encounter,” Cedric wrote on the website.
He said his business relationship with Smith Devereux Winery grew after meeting its vintner, Ian Devereux, during a visit to Napa.
“He was a sincere, genuine dude,” Cedric said. “We met, we laughed, we talked, we became friends. We started to figure out what we wanted the wine to say through a process. He also appreciated my mom’s story. Taking those steps to connect with someone who knows and understands the wine industry has helped with my vision for Zetta.”
Cedric has been traveling across the country promoting his Zetta Napa Valley Red blend wine and has had significant press coverage.
Wednesday night (March 31) was no different; guests throughout the region packed Prime 55 Downtown from wall to wall. Thanks to promotion duo Erick Hubbard and Michael White of Mun & Mun for partnering with Cedric and Prime, family, friends, and supporters, including Sharita Kyles Wilson (Cedric’s sister) and St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones, came out to celebrate.
Cedric fellowshipped with guests, who enjoyed food and complimentary Zetta on every table – the first official sampling of the wine in St. Louis.
“I was trying to think of how to do something philanthropic with the wine,” Cedric said. “Since my mother was a reading specialist, I came up with a reason to give to literacy programs by doing the wine and dedicating it in her name. It gave more purpose when the opportunity came to launch a wine.”
Cedric describes Zetta’s taste as having a good balance and being palatable for the non-wine sophisticates. He hilariously imitated people who sip wine and analyze its flavor, including critiquing the notes.
As with most wines, people like to drink them with their food. He joked that while he isn’t trying to be bourgeois, he thinks charcuterie boards with refined meats, excellent cheeses, and crackers pair well with Zetta.
“It helps that red wines are always strong and great with red meat,” Cedric said in an interview with The St. Louis American at the mixer. “It’s got a mellow aspect that falls off your palate. I’ve enjoyed it with salmon and seabass [so can’t nobody tell me nothing].”
If his beloved mother were alive, Cedric said he believes she would love the wine and the excellent cause it’s contributing to.
“My mother was a big fan of my work as a comedian and who I grew to be as a person,” Cedric said. “That’s one of the things I love and represent about her when I do everything in my business. This [the wine] is something that I’m sure she would’ve enjoyed.”
Zetta is available for purchase for $64 at https://www.smithdevereux.com/, with 10% of assets donated to RedRoseReads Foundation, a literacy support organization.