Doddie'5 Sporting Wine in aid of MND

Dear Friends,

I mostly regale you about rugby matters and of course there is plenty still going on (6N and EPCR on the horizon!) but let us stop for a minute and think about some more important issues which touch our lives and inspire us, as we approach an end to lockdown.

Sometimes in life we get a chance to do something really special and for the small company which I founded, Sporting Wine Club, that moment has arrived.

Doddie Weir is not only a legendary Scottish Rugby International and British and Irish Lion, he is also one of the Sport’s great characters. I was lucky enough to play against him for a short while and then he has become a good friend over the years. As you will already know, he is fighting a battle against Motor Neuron Disease, and in June 2017 launched My Name'5 Doddie Foundation to raise funds to aid research into the causes of MND, investigate potential cures, and to make grants to individuals suffering from MND to enable them to live as fulfilled a life as possible. 

So, when the opportunity presented itself, I jumped at the chance to work with the Foundation and my great friend Kenny Logan of Logan Sports Marketing to kick off a unique fundraising initiative. Combining two of Doddie’s greatest passions - rugby and wine - the idea for ‘Doddie'5 Red Blend’ was born.

We approached the legendary Springbok family and our founding sporting winemaker, Schalk Burger & Sons, from their amazing Welbedacht Estate in South Africa, to see if they could mix a traditional Bordeaux blend with 5 grape varieties, representing Doddie's shirt. In imitable style, they have produced a real winner (just read the review from Master of Wine Greg Sherwood - 94 points!).

To top it all off, renowned mouth painter and former academy player at Saracens, Henry Fraser, has designed the label. A freak accident in 2009 left Henry paralysed from the shoulders down and he has since found a new path with his remarkable ‘mouth-painting’ artwork.

Everything from the concept to the creation of this wonderful wine represents all the values that we and the sporting community holds dear. Please support Doddie and his Foundation while enjoying some world-class sporting wine.

Doddie also has a huge history with the British and Irish Lions and by the time the tour takes place in July we will all be ready to raise a glass to him and his incredible charity whether at home or abroad, because Schalk is holding some back fro the demand that is already building in South Africa!

Please become part of Doddie’s story, click on the following link to buy his wine: https://lnkd.in/dgNuZGx and you can also find it through our website below.

Thanks so much,

Simon 

Founder, Sporting Wine Club

www.sportingwineclub.com