Drew Bledsoe hopes to score with Walla Walla winery

Drew Bledsoe has traded in his cleats for a corkscrew.

The former Washington State University football star and New England Patriots quarterback is teaming up with well-known Washington winemaker Chris Figgins to start Doubleback Winery in Walla Walla.

Figgins is a childhood friend of Bledsoe’s whose family runs the pioneering Walla Walla winery Leonetti Cellars. The name Doubleback, developed by Seattle branding firm Kendall Ross, refers to Bledsoe returning home. Doubleback will ship its first batch of 600 cases in the summer 2010. Eventually it hopes to produce between 4,000 and 5,000 cases a year.

The winery’s high-end cabernet sauvignon and merlot will sell for between $70 and $85 a bottle. More than half of the first batch will go to the winery’s mailing list, with the remaining bottles sold mostly in restaurants.