N o w - H o l l y w o o d . b l o g s p o t .c o m

Actor Antonio Banderas is making his debut in the wine business by acquiring half the shares of Anta Bodegas, which produces wines under the Ribera del Duero label, as well as extra virgin olive oil.

Banderas will be the co-owner along with the Ortega family which has run the firm for 10 years, but the newly structured company will be known as Anta Banderas Bodegas, the company announced Monday.

Anta Bodegas, based in the central Spanish town of Villalba de Duero, was founded in 1999 by Teodoro Ortega with an initial investment of 30 million euros ($39 million) and currently his sons Federico and Teodoro manage the business.

The firm has a production capacity of 1.5 million bottles per year, which are sold throughout Spain and are exported to the main countries in the Americas, Europe and Asia.

From the 235 hectares (about 590 acres) of its own vineyards, the firm produces four reds and a rose.

In this new phase of operations as Anta Banderas, the brand names of the firm's wines will be preserved along with the design of the labels, however they will now bear the firm's new name.

"Antonio Banderas is someone who is passionate about the world of wine and it makes us proud that he selected us as partners. Together, we'll continue standing for quality and we will provide the operation with a bigger international dimension," Federico Ortega said.

The Spanish actor has expressed his interest in becoming personally involved in all the wine production processes.