Star NFL Quarterback Drew Bledsoe’s Winery Will Support College Athletes

As wine has replaced football as a main career focus, longtime National Football League quarterback Drew Bledsoe has found a way to combine both loves. Bledsoe has collaborated with a fundraising arm of his alma mater, Washington State University, to unveil a new offering: Ol’ Crimson Legendary Red Blend.

Bledsoe’s winery, Bledsoe Family Winery, will work in partnership with the Cougar Collective to sell the wine. Cougar Collective is Washington State University’s NIL (name, image, and likeness) organization, which raises money to pay the college’s athletes.

Bledsoe is a Washington native and excelled as a high school quarterback in Walla Walla and lettered in basketball and track. He later was inducted into the state’s high school athletes’ hall of fame.

His career at Washington State University launched him into the national spotlight. Bledsoe took over as quarterback for the team during his freshman year and later became a full-fledged star leading his team to a top 20 national ranking and was named the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year.

He skipped his senior season and became the first overall pick in the 1993 NFL Draft. Bledsoe’s success on the field helped turn around the New England Patriots.

Bledsoe spent 14 years in the NFL, made one Super Bowl appearance, and was named to four Pro Bowls. Off the field, he shared wine with teammates and their spouses. He did not know at the time that those casual gatherings would lead to his next professional endeavor.

Doubleback Winery

After his retirement from the game, he retired from the game and opened a winery in Walla Walla. Bledsoe called it “Doubleback Winery” to commemorate his return to “double back” to Washington where he grew up.

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Bledsoe has prioritized sustainability at his Washington winery and employs many of his staff year-round to help hold onto what could traditionally be a transient workforce.

“From the start, this was never going to be a hobby winery. Having a hobby winery with your name on a bottle is cool, but we always intended to actually build a business,” Bledsoe said in the Land Report’s profile piece with him in 2024.

“Early on, we were not thinking that we were going to have three wineries and have 60 employees. We were just going to be a cool little boutique ­winery and hopefully make some good wine,” he told the Land Report.

Bledsoe’s new wine, which sells for $45 per bottle, provides NIL support for Washington State University athletes, something that athletes of his generation did not have.

"Ol' Crimson Red — it's a blend from Walla Walla. We farm our own fruit, everything is made in house and when we go to put together a blend like this one for Ol' Crimson we can have complete trust it's going to be great wine … I think you're going to love it and it's obviously going to support our Cougs," said Bledsoe in this 247sports.com announcement. 

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