Fri, 24 Jun 22 11:00:33 +0000

These NBA stars want to trade tips for nipples and get the right attention in the wine industry.

Aspen, Colorado (CNN)Throughout the five-course dinner, threeNBAstars talk little about basketball. It was.

Little was mentioned about the NBA titles that the Golden State Warriors won the night before. There is no talk about which jersey they will wear next season. I can hardly say a word about the possibility of being inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame next year.

Instead, conversation tended to go to a completely different topic: winemaking.

"We're from the world we're from, we're the top dogs. Carmelo Anthony," DWade "-They know we're in the basketball. "The retired NBA starDwyane Wadesaid while standing. Last week in front of guests at a special dinner celebrating a black chef and winemaker at the historic Jerome Hotel in Aspen, Colorado.

"Come to this world, we are not anyone."

This world (wine manufacturing industry) is Wade, 10 times NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony, New Orleans Pelican's guard CJ McCollum and other NBA players build a legacy far beyond the basketball court.

'What is he doing?

Anthony's journey as a wine lover began as a lonely journey.

"There was no wine in the NBA," he described his first year in the league. "My journey has been going on since [2005]. I didn't even know I was on a wine journey. I drank wine, went to a restaurant, sat in a bar, and [teammate] I was looking for a glass of wine just by looking at it. "Man, what is he doing?" I like.

"It wasn't appreciated, it was just looked down on," he said. "It was'it's bad for you and you're not supposed to drink it.'" But you can go for a spirit. I didn't understand.

Anthony began to understand the value and quality of wine during his expedition to Sacramento, California. There he visited a wine club offering varieties from the nearby Napa Valley and other parts of the world.

In 2011, when Anthony was traded from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks, his wine was well received.

"It exposed me to a whole new world of wine lovers, different wines, different chats, different tastes, and from that point on, this is the genre I want to join. Okay. ""

Slowly, Anthony said, other players in the league came to watch Burgundy, Bordeaux and Beaujolais.

The finest wine club

The final explosion of wine ratings among the world's greatest basketball players is the NBA's shortened 2019 It was more obvious than the end of -20. Season in a pandemic isolated bubble of the league in Orlando, Florida.

Due to lack of physical connection to the outside world, players from multiple teams sat together to drink and compare their favorite wines during downtime.

At the time, a security guard at the Portland Trail Blazers, McCallum brought 84 bottles into the bubble, including the recently releasedMcCallum Heritage 91Pinot Noir.

"Keep the hotel room at 60 degrees Fahrenheit to keep the wine at the right temperature," said wine lovers at theFood&Wine Classiclast weekend. McCallum said. Aspen. "I would sleep in full pajamas and a stocking hat with a small ball on top," he joked.

New Wine Maker

Classic introduces Anthony to introduce the first vintage blend from his wine estate brandVII (N) It was also a decided event. -Seventh EstateWine, the faithfulness of the vow is the 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape from the Rhone region of southern France.

"I went to France every summer, from which I traveled to Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne for vineyards," Anthony recalled.

"My friend said I need to go to the Rhone and Chateauneuf du Pape. Man, I love CDP.

" When I get there, I I was hugged. They guided me everything. They guided me the whole business. They guided me to the industry. They guided me to the area. They showed me how to make wine. Everything you can learn. They taught me. "

Anthony emphasizes that his wine, which will be available for purchase in the fall, is not just his name on the bottle.

"Put my name on the label I didn't want to do. I mean what's in the bottle. Storytelling on the back of the grapes and behind the winemaker. What did I really need to make this wine to make this blend? That's what I care about, "said Anthony.

"This is a new heritage for me."

New heritage

Anthony, Wade, McCollum are from Food & Wine Classic We have revealed to everyone in our ears how successful we are in the wine industry. Define brand and heritage above all else done on the basketball court.

"I am a process of diversifying spaces, people exploring wine, exploring wine regions, and even building a wine business. At the end of the day, top-to-bottom expression My goal is to increase the number of wines. " This spring he planted 7 acres of Pommard Pinot Noir vines in the318 acres of vineyards he purchased with Elise. His wife, McCallum, in Willamette Valley, Oregon.

"I understand the importance of my voice in this industry. What I'm trying to do is to make sure this [wine industry] is getting bigger and bigger. Continue to use my platform and my voice. Wade, co-founder ofWadeCellarsin Napa Valley, California, said:

"Basketball What was established in the world, the world of sports, I did it, "Anthony added. Now I have to establish something else in another industry. It will give me new energy, new light, new opportunities.