The ex-English cricket stars Ian Botham and Bob Willis are to join the growing list of minor celebrities to launch their own wine brands.


The two cricket legends have joined forces with Australian winemaker for the project.


The wines, which include a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Chardonnay, will be sold in the UK exclusively through Tesco.com.


The wines will be called Botham Merrill Willis wines or BMW for short.


Ian Botham said: “I was originally a beer drinker, but when I discovered wine many years ago I became a convert and it’s been a big passion of mine ever since.


“Geoff Merrill and I are great mates and producing our own wine is something we’ve talked about for a long time. Now we’ve actually done it and I’m very proud of the result.”

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Bob Willis said: “Other celebrities have put their names to wine before, but we were able to call on the expertise of someone who is internationally recognised as one of the finest wine makers in the world.


“Geoff knows exactly what we like and dislike when it comes to wine and the BMW range reflects our tastes.”


Both the 2002 BMW Chardonnay and the 2001 BMW Cabernet Sauvignon come from a blend of grapes from the south Australian wine regions of Coonawarra and McLaren Vale.