Jess Jackson (wine)

Infobox Person
name = Jackson, Jess


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birth_date = Birth date and age|1930|2|18|mf=y
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education = Abraham Lincoln High School UC-Berkeley
occupation = Wine entrepreneur
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Jess Jackson (born February 18, 1930 and raised in San Francisco, California) is an American wine entrepreneur and self-made billionaire. He started the Kendall-Jackson wine empire with the family's 1974 purchase of an 80-acre pear and walnut orchard in Lakeport, California that was converted to a vineyard.

Education

Jackson graduate from San Francisco's Abraham Lincoln High School. He earned a law degree from Boalt Hall Law School at the University of California, Berkeley.

Jackson currently resides in Healdsburg, California.

Business interests

Jackson made his money by turning his back on the fashion towards single-varietal labelling in favour of blending different wines to establish a consistent style for a particular brand.

In 2005 he was listed by Forbes Magazine as the 366th wealthiest person in the world (tied with many others), with 1.8 billion dollars in assets. The 2007 list by Forbes Magazine places Jackson tied for 432nd richest person in the world with 2.2 billion dollars in assets.

Thoroughbred horse racing

Jackson, as majority stakeholder at 31%, led a syndicate that acquired the Thoroughbred Curlin in 2007. Other partners were Satish Sanan (29%), George Bolton (20%), and Midnight Cry Stable (20%) of Shirley Cunningham and William Gallion. In late 2007, around the controversy of Cunningham and Gallion's arrest, Jackson acquired a total of 80% of Curlin. The hitherto undefeated colt came third in the 2007 Kentucky Derby, despite entering the race as co-favorite. He redeemed himself in the Preakness Stakes where he edged out Derby winner Street Sense by a nose. In the Belmont Stakes, the final race of the Triple Crown, Curlin lost by a head to filly Rags to Riches. Curlin continued his 2007 career by placing third in the Haskell Invitational, first in the Jockey Club Gold Cup and first in the highly esteemed Breeders' Cup Classic. Curlin was named horse of the year in 2007, and Jackson announced at the Eclipse Awards ceremony that Curlin would continue to race at age four, making him one of the only top three-year-olds of 2007 to continue racing.

Curlin shipped to Dubai in early 2008. There he won a small prep race, and then the $6 million dollar Dubai World Cup, the richest race in the world.

References

* [http://www.kj.com/learn/founder.asp Jess Jackson profile at Kendall-Jackson Estates]

See also

*List of wine personalities

Persondata
NAME=Jackson, Jess
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Founder of Kendall-Jackson wine empire
DATE OF BIRTH=February 18, 1930
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=
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