At Rebellium Wines, bottles are never just vessels of Cabernet; they are canvases. Each hand-painted magnum tells a story, bridging the Napa Valley’s obsession with fine wine and the art world’s love of singular expression. Founded in 2017, Rebellium is the brainchild of Napa native Blake Barrios, whose appearance and sensibility challenge every cliché of the Valley vintner. With his black nail polish, creative edge, and painter’s eye, Barrios hardly looks like someone who spent 18 years in the wine industry—much of it in sales. But his vision was shaped by that insider knowledge: he knew how the business worked, and he knew what it lacked.

An Artist’s Rebellious Streak

Barrios doesn’t see bottles as packaging; he sees them as canvases. What began as a side project—donating hand-painted bottles of wine to charity auctions—evolved into a full-fledged brand with its own following. Today, Rebellium produces wines in tiny quantities, often in magnum format, each hand-painted by Barrios in painstaking layers of oil-based DecoColor paints. A single bottle can take days or even weeks to complete, with each design tailored to a theme or, in private commissions, to a client’s interests.

His personal style—edgy, creative, with a touch of the rebellious—infuses the brand. “I was born and raised in Napa, but I’ve always seen the world through the eyes of an artist,” he says. “Wine was my industry, art was my calling. Rebellium let me merge the two.”

The Winemakers’ Hand

While Barrios paints the exterior, he entrusts the contents to a pair of seasoned Napa winemakers. Jon Keyes, a UC Santa Barbara chemistry graduate, brings an eclectic résumé: stints at cult producer Sine Qua Non, a vintage at Two Hands in Australia, cellar master at Outpost Wines under Thomas Rivers Brown, collaborations with Mark Herold, and projects like Dwyane Wade’s Wade Cellars. At Rebellium, Keyes embraces a no-intervention philosophy, coaxing expressiveness from fruit sourced in Oakville.

Renowned winemaker Julien Fayard, in collaboration with Barrios, crafted the Imperial Artist Series—a philanthropic project consisting of just ten six-liter bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon blends. Each Imperial is a monumental piece of glass art, painted by Barrios and filled by Fayard, then released to support charitable causes. Though Cabernet Sauvignon remains the signature varietal for both Rebellium and the Imperial Artist Series, both winemakers have freedom to explore. Their choices shape the limited runs, underscoring the brand’s philosophy: art outside, artistry inside.

Philanthropy as Core Identity

From its earliest days, Rebellium has built philanthropy into its DNA. The message is consistent: Rebellium bottles are not just collectibles, but conduits for change. And Barrios walks the walk. He is currently an active mentor for the Scars Foundation, supports the Teen Wild Recology Center, and partners with a rotating roster of nonprofits through Rebellium Studio. He regularly volunteers, teaching art therapy to youth groups, special needs adults, and the elderly.

One of his most poignant projects is his ongoing collaboration with Hawken Miller and CureDuchenne, the only nonprofit devoted exclusively to muscular dystrophy research. Through this work, Barrios has partnered with Miller—one of the most visible young voices in the fight against Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Diagnosed as a child and now in his late twenties, Miller has outlived early medical expectations and turned that experience into advocacy, journalism, and storytelling.

A USC-trained journalist and current content strategist for CureDuchenne (the nonprofit founded by his parents), Miller writes and speaks with authority on living with Duchenne, pushing for broader clinical trial access, and humanizing a disease often spoken of only in medical terms. His mix of resilience, articulate perspective, and public visibility has made him an influential figure not just within the Duchenne community, but across rare-disease advocacy more broadly.

Together, Barrios and Miller are creating a special label for 24 cases of wine made by Keyes, with 100% of proceeds funding Miller’s nonprofit events. Upon meeting, their connection was immediate.

“I instantly knew that Blake was different when he kneeled down to greet me,” says Miller. “He did it unintentionally, but it showed me a lot. To make an effort to get on my eye level to introduce himself made me feel like anyone else. I didn’t have to strain my neck to look up—it was a human-to-human interaction. Blake has a compassionate heart, and working with him on this wine project has made that clear. He valued my insight and opinion as if my disability didn’t matter. That’s how it should be, and it was refreshing. Giving someone like me a platform to share my story and raise awareness for Duchenne muscular dystrophy through wine is something I’ll be eternally grateful for.”Shorten with AI

Adds Barrios, “I am honored to collaborate with Hawken and CureDuchenne. From the moment we met, I was struck by his passion and recognized that we share a vision always be a dreamer. Hawken’s role as a dedicated advocate for Duchenne and his community is both inspiring and impactful. I am grateful for his support in amplifying my work as an artist, and together, we are proud to contribute to raising awareness and making a difference.”

Celebrity Collaborations

Word of mouth has led to some of Rebellium’s most dazzling projects. Barrios has created bottles for Snoop Dogg, Carlos Santana, Lenny Kravitz, Paul McCartney, Thomas Keller, Emeril Lagasse, Masaharu Morimoto, Godsmack, and Brad Whitford of Aerosmith. Each commission is a conversation—a client’s passion or persona distilled into imagery, then painted across glass. For some, it’s music. For others, food. For all, it’s individuality. “We make everything about the user,” Barrios says. “The sky is the limit.”

Scarcity and the Collector’s Market

Unlike most boutique wineries bottling thousands of cases, Rebellium works in microscopic volumes. Some series have produced just 150 magnums, while the Imperial Artist Series is measured in single digits. The format itself adds allure; magnums and Imperials age differently—more gracefully—becoming not just wines but time capsules.

Collectors have noticed. These collector bottles sell on an allocated waitlist from $2,000 to $7,000 each. Scarcity drives prestige, and Rebellium is an object lesson in how art and wine converge to create cultural capital. And yet, the strategy was never purely commercial.

“It all spread by word of mouth,” says Barrios, whose artwork is on display at Hope & Grace Wines in Yountville and at Maison Fayard in downtown Napa. “From one collector to the next, from one artist or musician to another.”

Napa’s Rebel Tradition

Though Rebellium feels novel, it sits within a long Napa tradition of defiance. Robert Mondavi once rejected generic “chablis” and “burgundy” in favor of varietal wines. Warren Winiarski and Mike Grgich upended French supremacy at the 1976 Judgment of Paris. Today, Barrios, Keyes, and Fayard rebel differently—merging fine art, luxury scarcity, and social purpose.

The Future of Rebellium

Looking ahead, Barrios envisions more collaborations—both artistic and philanthropic. Future series may involve additional musicians and chefs, expanding the Imperial Artist concept and continuing to tie each bottle to a cause. But growth, he insists, will remain controlled. Rebellium thrives on its intimate scale. Each bottle is meant to feel personal—touched by an artist’s hand, crafted by a winemaker who experiments like a scientist, and connected to causes that matter.

The Convergence of Canvas and Cabernet

Rebellium Wines is less about resisting Napa tradition than expanding it. The region has always thrived on innovation, from pioneering vineyard plantings to architect-designed wineries. What Barrios, Keyes, and Fayard add is a new dimension: the wine bottle as art object, auction lot, and philanthropic engine.

Open a Rebellium bottle and you’ll encounter two stories. One lies within the glass—a rich Cabernet crafted by a winemaker with a résumé that spans cult producers and international icons. The other lies on the glass—brushstrokes layered by an artist who believes wine should serve community as much as collectors.

And that’s a rebellion worth toasting to.

For more information www.rebelliumwines.com