Wine has a lot in common with golf. Both exist within a world of long-standing rules. Mastering both takes time. Both are enjoyed in social settings. And, in the case of the official wine of the 2016 Ryder Cup, both exist in the rarified air.
As Hazeltine plays host to the 41st Ryder Cup, Mouton Cadet will serve as the event’s official wine. Between now and the end of Sunday’s play, the folks beyond the French winery estimate they’ll sell more than 55,000 glasses of their titular vintage.
Also: 2016 Ryder Cup: A Study in the Future of Golf
Mouton Cadet’s Managing Director Hugues Lechanoine (top, right) was on hand at Hazeltine this week to show off the winery’s official Ryder Cup bottle. Designed by artist and legendary golf course designer Robert Trent Jones, Jr. (whose father designed Hazeltine National), the bottle offers a new take on the host course’s famous walking golfer logo.
According to Lechanoine, Mouton Cadet began by supplying wine to the European Tour before connecting with the Ryder Cup. The winery chose a Merlot-influence vintage to satisfy both the international and American palette.
“We supply 12 European Tour events,” Lechanoine said. “The Ryder Cup discussions grew out of that and started to support the game, not a specific country or team. We were the official supplier at Gleneagles for the last Ryder Cup, and we kept it going for 2016.”
“We find that, with so many people from all over the world attending, there’s no better place to test our wine on an international scale than the Ryder Cup. To prepare, we’ve been doing our internal homework to improve the sourcing of the grapes and the style of wine. ”
“Here at Hazeltine, we have access to both VIPs and the general public.”
For wine lovers not on hand outside Minneapolis this weekend, they can fetch a bottle of Mouton Cadet Bordeaux at wine shops throughout the U.S.
