Margaret River wine label Choosy Beggars has aligned itself with the “brosés” (or men who enjoy drinking rosé) to keep the conversation about men’s health and well-being going beyond the hirsute high point of Movember.
A special partnership between Coles Liquor Group and its exclusive wine brand, Choosy Beggars raises funds for Movember all year long thanks to a 50¢ donation with the purchase of any of the wines in the selection.
“The fact this Movember fund-raiser runs all year is really special and hopefully it ensures that we keep men’s health on the agenda,” says Coles Liquor Wine Sourcing Manager James Vercoe.
Challenging stereotypes
For Choosy Beggars award-winning wine maker Julian Langworthy, the delicate pink Choosy Beggars rosé is the Movember hero, and not just because its label sports a fetching handlebar moustache.
“Our Rosé is the most popular variety from the Choosy Beggars range and a hugely sought-after style, but it’s the stereotype that rosé is a ‘feminine’ style that makes this wine an agent for change,” he says.
“It’s all about challenging stereotypes and expectations about what masculinity means, whether that’s in relation to talking about your health and mental well-being or enjoying a pink drink.”
Importance of mental health
Research from the Movember Foundation has found that a quarter of men globally (25%) reported their mental health had deteriorated during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet only 16% had spoken to a Health Care Provider about their mental health – an issue that has been at the heart of the Movember campaign since it began in 2003.
Mr Langworthy, who is based in Margaret River, says mental health for men is a big issue across regional areas in Australia.
“I think we’re making progress and events like Movember really are a catalyst for men to open up about what they’re experiencing, it starts a conversation,” he says.
Movember is the leading charity changing the face of men’s health on a global scale, focusing on mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer.
In the past two years, the Choosy Beggars – Coles Liquor partnership raised close to $170,000 for Movember, and with sales of the label growing strongly, the outlook for this year is looking rosy.
