Jimmy Butler became an avid fan of drinking wine in recent years, and he just revealed how he got into drinking win in the first place. While speaking about his journey that led him to finding a long-term home with the Miami Heat, Butler shared that Mark Wahlberg peer pressured him into drinking wine.
During a conversation with GQ’s Zito Madu, Butler recalled the story of drinking win on a “Transformers” movie set with Wahlberg back during his Chicago Bulls days:
“I know this date because it was the day before my birthday and I was in Chicago.” Wahlberg was there, filming a Transformers sequel, and had invited Butler to the set. At that point, said Butler, “I ain’t never had wine before.”
Despite never consuming wine in his life before meeting Wahlberg, Jimmy Butler would attempt to play it cool by lying to Wahlberg:
“[Mark] was like, ‘Hey, do you drink wine?’” Butler continued. “I’m like, ‘Hell no. I don’t drink wine.’ So I’m looking around and all eyes are on me, and then an individual I was with from the Bulls nudged me. The nudge to me meant, like, ‘Yo, of course you drink wine. Mark Wahlberg’s offering you wine!’” Butler tried to play it cool. “‘Yeah, I drink. I drink wine here and there,’” he said. Wahlberg poured him a glass of 2010 Sassicaia, and Butler thought, “‘You know what? This isn’t that bad.’”
After his hangout session with Wahlberg, Butler has now become a wine connoisseur of sorts when he’s not on the court. Even though he questioned the price of wine, the All-Star guard now loves the bottle of 2010 Sassicaia that Wahlberg introduced him to on that fateful day.
Butler came into the league as a reserved, hard-working guard who was attempting to make a name for himself. While he’s still the same tough-nosed player who came into the league, Jimmy Butler is beginning to build his own personal brand and image, which apparently involves drinking wine with Wahlberg.
