Earlier this week, I could have had wine signed by Philadelphia Flyers bruising legend Dave “The Hammer” Schultz.
Dave’s wine, that is. The Hammer Chardonnay. Given Dave’s playing reputation as an enforcer, I’d hope that this Chard packs at least 14.5% abv and is an oak & fruit bomb that will knock you squarely on your ass after two glasses.
[ Editor’s note: I met The Hammer once. He’s a very big and imposing man and I want to make it very clear that I am not making fun of him. Thanks. ]
Dave’s wine is part of the NHL Alumni Signature Wine Series – wines that bear the picture and signatures of hockey greats like Gordie Howe (another Chard bottling), Wendell Clark (a Canadian-only Merlot) and Pat LaFontaine (a CA Cab) – the proceeds are divvied up among a few charitable causes:
“There are three charitable components to the NHL Alumni Signature Wine Series™ wine program. First, a portion of the proceeds from every bottle sold will be donated to the charity of each player’s choice. Second, each of the teams’ Alumni Associations will receive a portion of the proceeds to be further donated to the charities of their choice. Finally, a portion of the proceeds will also benefit the NHL Alumni Association’s “Hockey’s Greatest Family Fund” which helps bring together former players to support charitable causes, assist former players in life after hockey and generally promote the game of hockey.”
The wines are made by Ironstone Winery and distributed via MyWinesDirect. I haven’t tried them yet, and I’m not holding my breath over it, either – both Dave Schulz and Bobby Clarke are legends in Philly, but thanks to the Communist-like liquor sales setup in the Flyers’ home state, those living in PA won’t be able to have the wines shipped to them. Oh, the irony…
Personally, I view this as a logical guy response to Paris Hilton’s wine-in-a-can. What do you think about celebrity wine and the NHL series? Let’s hear it in the comments!
Cheers!
the Lafontaine is a Chardonnay- Rob Ray is the cab
Doh!
the website says it's a cab, but we have it in our store and it's definitely a chard. unless there are two
Think the celebrity wines may do fairly well with NHL fans who drink wine. Probably not that many, those I know are more a beer and burger bunch. If the wines are half way descent they may do OK with the non-fans. The fact that the proceeds are given to charities may even help sell a few.
Celebrity wines as whole, in my opinion, is just a marketing gimmick to deliver so-so wines to the consumer. If I try these wines and find them to be very nice wines at a reasonable price, I will change that opinion.
It's interesting that the celebrity cache can almost work *against* a product like wine…
This NHL wine stuff just sounds like a bad business idea to me. Who comes up with this stuff? Maybe it will compete with the likes of Mad Dog. -Your blog rocks dude.
Thanks! Mad Dog….? :)