‘Wine guy’ samples 25 boozy drinks during London Marathon

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And for his next trick, he’ll eat a brick of cheese while running a marathon.

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Not really, but a wine merchant did recently uncork a viral video following after blind-testing a different glass of wine at each 1.6-kilometreinterval of the London Marathon.

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Tom Gilbey said he feels “honoured” that his challenge went viral, as he surpassed his fundraising target.

Gilbey, nicknamed “the wine guy,” sampled 25 glasses of wine during the race, stopping to guess the drink’s grape variety, country of origin and vintage at each interval.

A video he posted on TikTok has amassed more than 3.2 million views.

He took his first sip at about 9:30 a.m., shortly after the race started.

Gilbey aimed to raise $3,400 for Sobell House hospice charity in Oxford, which cared for his mom in her final days of life. His fundraiser had exceeded $33,600.

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The wine drinker said on his JustGiving page he was running the London Marathon “to raise money for the wonderful team at Sobell House hospice, who nursed and cared for my dear mum in her last few days.”

The Londoner said the marathon went “really well” and that the wine-tasting stops served as a motivator.

Of the 25 glasses sampled, Gilbey said he got four entirely wrong, seven correct and the remainder mostly correct.

He finished the race in four hours, 41 minutes, including his stops for drinking.

“It’s my first experience of this going absolutely mad, and I feel very honoured,” he said.

“It’s just incredible, and it’s great because that’s what it’s all about. It’s for a great charity, and they’re one of many hospices that just work their socks off to make massive differences.”

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The wine ranged from bottles purchased at gas stations, mini bottles and canned wine to higher-end options.

Gilbey said he had avoided feeling tipsy by only drinking small sips of wine, or by spitting it out after tasting.

“If they were good, I might swallow it and if they were bad, they went on the road,” he said. “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.”

To celebrate finishing the marathon — and the wine — Gilbey drank a glass of champagne.

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