@tomgilbeywine AND WE’VE ONLY DONE A VIDEO … 26.2 miles 25 wines tasted blind 7 fully correct, 4 wrong & 14 mostly right Over £10k raised for @sobell.house Donation link still open in Bio …. BIG FAT THANK YOU ❤️ #londonmarathon #marathon #blindtasting #tomgilbey ♬ original sound – Tom Gilbey
The best vintners can tell you the region, grape variety, and year of production of a specific wine just from a sniff and a little sip. But can they also do it while running a marathon? Wine merchant Tom Gilbey put his skills to the test for a good cause. As the expert ran the London Marathon, he stopped at various points to taste 25 wine samples and guess at their origins.
Gilbey has made a name for himself on TikTok, where he shares his knowledge and advice on wine, earning the nickname of “the wine guy.” Ahead of the London Marathon, he announced he would be running to raise money for Sobell House, the hospice charity that looked after his mother in her final days of life. Gilbey had an original target of £2,000 ($2,488), but once his video running and blind-tasting wines went viral, donations soared, and his fundraiser has now passed £17,000 ($21,136).
The wine connoisseur chronicled his effort in one video. The premise was simple: he'd run the marathon and stop every mile to sample a wine. Ready for the adventure, he ran with two glasses attached to his fanny pack: one for the reds and one for the whites. Gilbey tasted wines from all over the world, from Chile to South Africa, from Australia to Spain with many coming from gas stations and mini bottles. Out of the 25 wines he blind tasted, he got seven completely right, four wrong, and 14 mostly right, as he did guess some of the details.
Due to his wine stops, Gilbey ended up completing the race in four hours and 41 minutes. Overall, he described the marathon as going “really well,” saying that he was spurred to run by the prospect of having a little wine at the end of each mile. To avoid getting too drunk to run, he only had small sips of wine or simply spat it out after tasting. “I think the pain of the running allowed me to not feel anything other than the urge to finish. I think it’s a great way to stay sober,” he told The Guardian.
“It’s my first experience of this going absolutely mad, and I feel very honored,” he concluded after celebrating the finish with a glass of champagne. Although he wouldn't go through it again, he would recommend others to undergo a similar crazy task.
Gilbey said, “I think in life, sometimes you get a silly idea that resonates but two silly ideas rarely resonate, so I’d encourage everybody to have a silly idea for a good cause and see what happens.”
Vintner Tom Gilbey has made a name for himself on TikTok, where he shares his knowledge and advice on wine–earning the nickname of “the wine guy.”
@tomgilbeywine BATTLE OF THE BIG GUNS – Oh no, here I go again, having a go on the 2nd biggest wine brand in the world. Yes or No? Tasting Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon #redwine #cabernetsauvignon #luxury #finewine #tomgilbey #recommendation #supermarket #winetok #wine #help #winelovers #winetime #chile #chileanwine ♬ original sound – Tom Gilbey
The expert recently ran the London Marathon, stopping to taste 25 wine samples throughout the race and take a guess at their origins to raise money for a hospice.
@tomgilbeywine10 DAYS UNTIL MARATHON MADNESS. I’m raising money for Sobell House Hospice blind tasting a wine every mile & trying to guess the country, grape and vintage for 26 wines. Silly enough? Please support in anyway you can – messages, emojis & through the link in bio♬ original sound – Tom Gilbey
Tom Gilbey: Website | TikTok
h/t: [The Guardian]
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