How would you celebrate completing the London Marathon? If your answer is ‘sparkling wine and 2kg of tiramisù’, then Italian wine producer Zonin1821 has you covered.
Many of those running the London Marathon on 26 April will use the days and weeks after to indulge. And, if you’re hitting the vices, you may as well do four in one: coffee, cream, sugar and alcohol.
That, at least, is what Zonin1821 is offering 10 runners from the UK’s wine and hospitality trade. Each of them will receive a two-kilogram tray of tiramisù customised with their race number as well as a glass of Zonin Prosecco Millesimato.
The reason is that Zonin1821 is sponsoring The Longest Tiramisù, an attempt to break the Guinness World Record (which currently stands at 273.5 metres). The grand endeavour will take place at Chelsea Old Town Hall on the same day as the race, with chefs preparing the dish from scratch in an effort to hit the 300m mark.
For each 2kg slice, Zonin1821 will also donate £55 to the EShareLife Foundation, the attempt’s official charity partner. Supporting projects around the world in disadvantaged communities, the foundation ensures the event’s positive impact once the spike in blood sugar has settled.
Interested runners are advised to email [email protected] with their name, race number and proof of London Marathon participation.
Their celebratory slice (not to mention the glass of Prosecco) will be ready for collection from 3pm (after the attempt has been officially verified) until 9pm that night.
Local links and vinous variations
With a portfolio of estates across the country, including the largest family producer of Prosecco, Zonin1821 prides itself as a symbol of Italianness.
There is thus little surprise that it is promoting one of the nation’s favourite desserts – not least because Treviso, in the heart of the Prosecco region, is one of the top contenders for the home of tiramisù.
One version of its creation story has it as the invention of Ada Campeol. In the 1970s, at the trattoria Le Beccherie in Treviso, she supposedly made it as a pick-me-up following the birth of her son.
The original recipe serves as a sober treat, but variations over the years have soaked its sponge fingers in alcohol as well as coffee. Popular options include rum, brandy or coffee liqueur.
Perhaps the most traditional alcoholic variant, however, uses Marsala. The Sicilian fortified wine can add dried fruit and nut flavours as well as a boozy kick.
Indeed, it is now best known for cooking rather than drinking in the UK, as Patrick Schmitt MW wrote when announcing Tomasso Maggio of Marsala winery Cantine Florio as the Master Winemaker of the Year 2026.
“Today, it [Marsala] is better known as a cooking ingredient than as one of the most complete drinks money can buy,” he commented.
“So the next time you reach for a splash of Marsala for a tiramisu, remember that this fortified wine is capable of greatness.”
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