Winemakers say Paris Hilton unfit for Prosecco

MILAN (Reuters Life!) - Hotel heiress Paris Hilton dressed provocatively in a skimpy leopard print outfit and showing off her bare legs is not an image Italian winemakers feel is fitting for their Prosecco white sparkling wine.

Yet Hilton, in various high-heeled stages of undress, graces the ads of Rich Prosecco, an Austrian company selling the bubbly in 27 countries. What's worse, in the eyes of Prosecco producers, Rich Prosecco also comes in cans and in two fruit varieties.

"Hilton hotels are a sign of quality; Paris Hilton is not," said Fulvio Brunetta, president of the wine growers association of Treviso, the northern Italian city in the Veneto region where Prosecco is made.

Paris, a symbol of celebrity privilege in America, gained notoriety in 2003 when a home video of her having sex with a boyfriend was posted on the Internet.

She parlayed her notoriety, fueled by tabloid headlines about her partying lifestyle, into a celebrity career that has included reality television, a book and film roles.

Last year she spent more than three weeks in jail for violating probation in a drunk-driving case.

"Paris Hilton is sensationalism. It's not good. It's not adequate for Prosecco," Brunetta said.

The association is planning two meetings next week to decide on ways to protect the Prosecco name and insure that any company selling Prosecco is actually using wine made from the Treviso area.

"Without stricter rules, Rich Prosecco or another company could sell Prosecco made in Brazil or wherever," Brunetta said.

That's not going to stop Rich Prosecco, which says it sources its wine from the Treviso area.

"We follow exactly European laws, which are very strict, especially concerning wine," said Rich Prosecco Chief Executive and owner Gunther Aloys, who founded the company in 2006 in the Austrian ski resort of Ischgl.

To respect wine laws, Rich Prosecco's two fruit varieties, with a lower alcohol content and called Rich Passion and Rich Royal, are not labelled Prosecco.

Last year Rich Prosecco sold 10 million cans, primarily in Germany but also in China, India and South Korea, for about 2 euros (about $3) a can.

The company's rapid growth mirrors the rise of the Prosecco region, which last year produced 50 million bottles, up 14 percent from 2005, and is increasing exports to Canada and the United States, though Germans remain the top foreign buyers.

The winegrowers are concerned that Rich Prosecco may give their wine the image of a cheap fruit drink.

And then there's the cans, advertised by Paris, nude and painted in gold in one ad reminiscent of the James Bond film Goldfinger.

"In the U.S. and Australia they toast with beer bottles," Brunetta said. "That's their culture. The culture of Prosecco is one of friends meeting around a good bottle."

Rich Prosecco's Aloys says he is helping build the wine's world renown and does not understand the fuss.

"It's as if someone from Champagne would oppose us selling champagne cans with Kate Moss for example. It's just marketing and Paris Hilton is the most famous girl in the world."

Last year Paris's grandfather Barron Hilton said he would donate 97 percent of his $2.3 billion fortune to charity.

Jerry Oppenheimer, who profiled the Hilton family in his 2006 book "House of Hilton," has said Barron Hilton is embarrassed by the behavior of his socialite granddaughter Paris and believes it has sullied the family name.

Barron Hilton has not commented on the book.

(Reporting by Mathias Wildt)

Drunk Paris Hilton Shares Lesbian Kiss With Woman

A drunken Paris Hilton, who vowed to quit her partying ways after her release from jail, is back to being the same old socialite. Her latest antics prove she may not have learned her lesson about partying as she said when she was released.

Hilton was spotted at LAX on Wednesday wearing a shot black cocktail dress that club goers could easily see under while she was dancing on the tables. The 26-year-old was even thrown money as she danced on the bar. Witnesses say she had plenty to drink.

Perhaps her most shocking behavior of the night was when she locked lips with another woman. Hilton was photographed sharing the kiss with an unknown lady clubgoer.

Meanwhile, Hilton has sent her love and advice to her pal Britney Spears who is currently in the hospital after a custody stand off with her ex-husband Kevin Federline. Hilton wishes Spears well and says she hopes she "gets help" and "does better."


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Further in Paris News
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Forget Grandpa Hilton's inheritance - Paris is in the money!

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Paris clearly isn't taking the news that her inheritance has been slashed to a mere £2.5million too badly - as she clutched a wad of dollar bills of her own on another long night out.

The socialite appears to have started giving away her inheritance as she threw handfuls of dollar bills into the air while she partied at LAX nightclub in Las Vegas.


The hotel heiress and celebrity sex tape star has been hopping from club to club all year since her release from jail last year - and last night exceeded even her own boozy standards with an impromptu table-dancing session in the Las Vegas hotspot.

Dressed in a black minidress, and clearly the worse for wear, the New Year's Eve celebrations continued in the carefree world of Paris Hilton as she celebrated yet another wild night out by kissing a female clubber.

The news of Paris' reduced inheritance appears to have sent her off the rails as she has spent the last few days cosying up to Britney's ex-husband Kevin Federline, and even flirted with Anna Nicole Smith's ex Larry Birkhead.

Paris' loose behaviour is said to be the main reason her grandfather Barron Hilton has pledged 97 per cent of his £1.15billion fortune to a charitable foundation.

However, the socialite, who reports suggest was expecting closer to £50million of Hilton cash, appears not be that bothered about the dramatic cut in her inheritance.

Paris, who makes hundreds of thousands of dollars from endorsing products, said last year that she doesn't rely on her family for money.

She said: "Everything I've done I've done on my own I make my own money, I don't take anything from my family - I love making my own cash I'm not doing it for anyone else but me".

According to reports, Paris's grandfather has been unhappy with the star's media attention, and it appears he has cause for complaint.

The socialite first came to prominence in 2003 when a sex tape featuring her and ex-boyfriend Rick Saloman appeared on the internet.

In June last year, Hilton served 22 days in jail after being found guilty of driving with a suspended license.

Jerry Oppenheimer, author of House of Hilton: From Conrad to Paris: A Drama of Wealth, Power and Privilege, said Barron Hilton is unimpressed by Paris's behaviour in recent years.

Oppenheimer said: "Barron Hilton was, and is, extremely embarrassed by how the Hilton name has been sullied by Paris."


And now the 26-year-old socialite is expected to receive £2.5million compared to her original £50million expectation.


The hotel heiress has been partying hard since her recent break-up with her boyfriend, Swedish model Alex Vaggo.


And recently celebrated Christmas with a family holiday in Hawaii.

She has been linked to a number of men this year, including rocker Kid Rock, ex-husband of actress Pamela Anderson, as well as former fiancé Stavros Niarchos and musician and actor Josh Henderson

Britney Spears & Paris Hilton compete in Strip club

We’re kicking 2008 off with a juicy rumor that we’ll have to see to believe. It looks like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears are dragging their bitter bitch fight into the new year. The popwrecks are planning to launch their own chain of Las Vegas strip clubs, according to British reports.

It appears Paris Hilton and Britney Spears are starting the New Year with a new competition.

After hearing plans that Spears was looking to open a chain of strip clubs in Sin City, Hilton immediately began planning on opening her own chain. Popcrunch.com reports, “Britney was excited about this project for months and is really pissed with Paris that things have come to this.”

Spears has already been dealing with Hilton’s competitive plans, and then heard Hilton and ex-hubby Kevin Federline were seen partying together!

According to Popcrunch.com, “Britney has always thought of stripping as a bit like art – as a skill.” Spears’ interest in the “art” of stripping has led her to take this competition seriously, she does not want to give this up, "so when some Vegas-based developers approached her about investing money into three exclusive strip joints, which she wants to call Toxic Heaven, she jumped at the chance," said the website.

Hilton, who heard about Spear’s plans through her sister, Nicky, decided to jump on the bandwagon.

Paris wants to open her own strip joints, calling them Shagadillic. Paris is now in talks with business developers about the idea and wants to involve Nicky to keep it within the family. She thinks they can trounce Britney.

Source: www.thecelebritycafe.com

two nights in Paris

Apparently trying to re-vive his career as a Wigger, K-fed decides a rich heiress whore is his best way to go.

Source: Britney Spears Blog

















For a second night in a row, Paris Hilton and Kevin Federline found themselves running into each other while enjoying the Vegas party scene - with reports claiming that Paris made a move on the former Mr. Britney Spears.

As previously reported by Gossip Girls, the two spent Saturday night partying it up at LAX nightclub, with a source close to Federline telling People magazine that “Hilton invited the aspiring rapper back to her hotel room that evening.”

Continuing on with the Sin City nightlife, Paris and K-Fed both spent Sunday evening at Pure nightclub - where the former Simple Life star was hosting a party in the Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino hotspot.

And it became quite apparent that the hotel heiress had moved on from K-Fed, if there was ever really any interest at all. Paris, dressed in a sparkling pink dress, spent most of the night getting intimate with a mystery man, while K-Fed hung out with the boys as they pounded Jack Daniels straight from the bottle.

Tonight, the two are hosting separate New Years Eve parties. Hilton will play emcee at LAX while Federline is lined up to get the party started at Tangerine.

Paris Hilton Warms to Berlin's Cold-Weather Fun

In addition to enjoying the steamy nightlife, Paris Hilton is checking some of the chillier activities Berlin has to offer.

In a video shot Thursday in Potsdamer Platz, a big public square in the city center, Hilton, 26, is seen hopping on an inflatable rubber tire and sledding down a 230-ft. artificial snow mountain.

She also chatted with fans – and at one point had to scurry out of the way of another sledder – in what was a decidedly G-rated outing compared to Hilton's recent pole-dancing routine at a Berlin nightclub.

Hilton is in town to shoot an ad campaign for RICH Prosecco, in which she has an ownership stake.

She may be in Berlin for business to shoot racy ads for RICH Prosecco – but that doesn't mean Paris Hilton is skipping the club scene. The heiress hit up Maxxim Nightclub for a night of (pole) dancing for fellow clubgoers.