Benchmark Drinks managing director Paul Schaafsma said: “It has been an absolute privilege working with Sir Ian on his new wine range. His relentless enthusiasm and passion to find the best possible wines has driven this project. Together we traveled to all corners of Australia and New Zealand working with only the most respected producers in their regions.

"Ian understood exactly the style and quality he wanted to achieve and was not swayed at any turn. So many blends were rejected in the process, we just didn’t stop looking until the smile appeared on his face that confirmed we had found it. It is incredible the interest we have had from so many top producers who want to be involved."

Benchmark says it conducted extensive market research to ensure the proposition was a strong fit with target consumers. The positive results suggested that 85% of UK wine drinkers know of Sir Ian and consider him a sporting legend or know about his extensive work for charity. It also suggested that the equivalent of 4.6 million UK wine drinkers said they would definitely try a wine that had Sir Ian’s name on it. It is claimed the research  indicated that 38% of UK wine drinkers said they would hunt out wines from the Botham range next time they went shopping, which is the equivalent of 16.4 million people across the UK.

Benchmark says the research also concluded that 13 million consumers claim they find it difficult to choose a wine and more than 19 million say they just look for a name that they recognise. For any new wine brand to be successful, it must provide reassurance to consumers and doing that through a name they recognise, respect and trust is a tried and tested winning formula.