Sideways character actually WAS drinking "F-ing Merlot" !

[KurtNYC]

Just when I thought the snobbery associated with wine was fading, along comes "Sideways." Even those who haven't seen the (good but over-rated) movie are probably familiar with the line from the ads "I'm not drinking any f-- ing merlot!" The main character rapsodizes Pinot Noir. Now thanks to that movie and some novice wine drinkers self-doubts, sales of merlot has leveled off and the price of pinot is climbing. Wine is now huge in the U.S. so the impact of this movie translates into millions of dollars in wine sales.

Personally, I'm a drink-what-you-like kind of person who is pretty put off by people who claim to like certain wines but can't tell you why. Merlot is great wine -- round, dense, and good with food. I find pinots, on the other hand, to be all over the place. There are some cheaper pinots that I really like; Frei Brothers for one (~$7 bottle).

So here is the kicker -- when the movie was being put together, they approach a major merlot winery about using their wine and only when they turned them down, did they substitute pinot for merlot! Even the wine that Miles (the main character) loved was in fact merlot!

In fact, the wine that Miles most treasured in "Sideways," Chateau Cheval Blanc, is a blend of Merlot and another varietal he slams, Cabernet Franc. The filmmakers originally wanted Miles' fetish wine to be Chateau Petrus Pomerol, the world's most sought-after (and most expensive) Merlot.

"Quite a few film scripts cross my desk and I vaguely recall 'Sideways' asking for permission to use Petrus," Christian Moueix, who runs Chateau Petrus, said by fax. "I am afraid that at that time, I found the script unexciting and declined."

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/02/24/WIGOVBD2LU1.DTL

So merlot makers everywhere have Christian Moueix to thank for their falling sales.

And to Miles I say "YES YOU ARE DRINKING FREAKIN' MERLOT!...AND YOU LIKE IT!"

[DS1]

1. Whatever's on sale works for me

so long as it's not that Luna de Luna shite

[Benfea]

2. I take Dave Barry's approach to drinking:

"Finish it and go looking for the next one."

[realisticphish]

19. Commentary at a wine tasting"

On a particular wine:
"Woody"
"Far too much sulfur"
and Dave Barry's contribution
"Bat Urine"
:D

I love Dave Barry

[skygazer]

3. I sell wine

Since that movie came out, I've had so many people buying Pinot Noir, it's ridiculous. Several wineries have run out of Pinot until they can get the new vintages out. Personally, I've always enjoyed a good Pinot but I also enjoy plenty of other varietals. In fact, part of the fun of wine to me is trying different things. I find I like different wines depending on my mood, the weather, what I'm doing, what I'm eating or if I'm eating, etc. To lock oneself into one varietal because some idiot in a movie (which I've not seen, by the way) rhapsodizes about it is about as silly as anything I can think of. Just about as silly as the latest idiocy here in California - choosing a "state wine." :banghead:

[tigereye]

5. the movie is quite funny

since you know a lot about wine and live in Calif. the jokes would probably amuse you more than it would many people. The film had some hysterical moments of very dry humor.

[NV Whino]

9. I think you're right.

Californians in general and people involved in the wine industry in particular liked it or loved it. There were a lot of inside jokes that many people outside of the industry didn't get. Personally, I loved it. But I am not overly fond of Pinot Noir.

[bleedingheart]

29. the wine novices are the ones who have locked themselves into Pino

and when the learn more and get tired of Pinot...you will find it will balance out..

I myself like all kinds of wine and try and match my wines to my food/mood/setting...

However I have never been a fan of sweet wines...I had a sweet reisling recently that made me retch...it was a good wine but way too sweet...

[HuckleB]

31. That's what I figured.

Of course, the cost of a good Oregon pinot had already gone through the roof over the past decade or so, practically pricing me out of some of my favorites.

[Bunny]

4. I'm real unadventurous when it comes to wine.

I like a dry red, like a merlot or cabernet, and that's about it I'm perfectly happy to pay less than ten bucks a bottle, too. Actually, I don't think I'd even recognize a great wine if I tasted it :shrug:

[tigereye]

6. hey Happy Friday!

I like all types of wine. I guess the good thing about Sideways was that it made people think about more than merlot. (I like merlot, but there are many other types of wine to try.)

[Bunny]

7. And a happy Friday to you, too!

Although I was off work today, so it's been Friday since yesterday! :silly:

[NV Whino]

8. Yes you would.

Guaranteed.

[bleedingheart]

26. Hey Bunny!

While I don't normally spend more than $15 per bottle on wine...you can tell the difference between more expensive ones and the cheap ones....

I recommend a wine tasting seminar...I went to one at our public library...it was very informative and I learned a lot...and the money I spent was to improve the Children's Library center...and they brought in local wine experts...it was great!!!

[Taverner]

10. I'm a beer connoisseur personally

And I love a good IPA, and right now I'm really digging Black Butte Porter out of Deschutes Brewery...

[Misunderestimator]

21. If you're a fan of IPAs... try Anderson Valley Hop Ottin IPA...

It's incredible! Very hoppy. Mmmmmmm.

Edited to add: http://www.avbc.com/beers/ipa.html

Dogfish makes a "90 minute" IPA that's 9% alcohol. It is SO Much better than their "60 minute" one, but you just can't drink as much of it.

A good local one I found is Bell's Two-Hearted ale. Very tasty.

And another I found recently is the Dark Horse Crooked Tree IPA... Yummy.

[EstimatedProphet]

22. Agreed

There was a small microbrewery in Arlington VA that made what they called a RyePA-an IPA with rye added. I think that was one of my favorite beers ever.

[applegrove]

11. I thought that line on Merlot was hilarious.

[HuckleB]

32. It is hilarious.

Because most basic Merlots in a decent price range are exactly that: boring. Much like drinking a Budweiser.

[Magrittes Pipe]

12. Is Petrus more expensive than Le Pin these days?

I could never see fit to pay nearly $1000 for a bottle of wine, no matter how profound. Especially when you can STILL get Leoville Las Cases for hundreds less than a premiere cru. Which Petrus isn't, anyway (Pomerol having been given short shrift in the classification).

I'm not a huge merlot fan myself, but it does have one huge selling point over pinot noir: consistency. A great pinot is a soul-shaking experience, but a bad pinot tastes like pig shit. A mediocre merlot, on the other hand, is often still a soft, plummy, pleasant-enough quaff.

[KurtNYC]

14. Gonna be even more bad pinot out there soon

if they replant (anywhere and everywhere) to fill the demand.

[northzax]

15. no, Le Pin tends to be a bit more

primarily because of scarcity, there is about twice as much of any given vintage of Petrus as Le Pin (and that ain't much) And yes, it is ridiculous to spend that much but if someone else is buying...the 82 Petrus is well, as you put is, soul-shaking.

the problem with Le Pin is that it is so much, and so rare, that you simply can't get it from good years, for almost any price, so it tends to keep cachet in the wine world, but not outside. And, of course, they make a fabulous second-tier bottle.

and while this who 'f**kin merlot" thing is amusing, most people are going to hate cheap pinot noir, as you state. it is the most finicky of the noble grapes.

[Radical Activist]

13. Christian Moueix has good taste in wine AND movies

Calling Sideways unexciting is being very polite. Its kind of like NPR. Entertainment for middle class white people who want to act like snobs. At least NPR has some redeeming value. I never in my life thought I would see a movie where I thought full-frontal male nudity was the best part.

[Patiod]

16. Never thought I could pick out a really good wine

Was at a friend's party, and a bunch of people brought wine. I poured myself something dark, and ran over to the hostess. "Oh. My. God. What is this? It's the most amazing thing I've ever tasted. I've got to buy some!!!"

"Forget it. Chris brought it - he stole it from his Dad's cellar. It's probably a $65." (It was)

Up until that point, I figured I would never recognize great wine, but that stuff was amazing.

At his wedding, I bypassed the top shelf liquors and stuck to the wine, also from Dad's cellar. One thing I learned at that wedding: if you're a klutz, red wine is NOT what to drink when you're getting a candid photo taken with the bride, who is wearing traditional white. Especially when it's the end of the wedding, and they didn't have much in the way of food, but they did have a lot of toasts. And you're a klutz.

Just saying.

[LostinVA]

17. I prefer a nice Pinot Grigio, myself

[Missy Vixen]

18. I got tired of merlot a few years ago

It seemed like everytime there was an occasion to have a glass of wine, the first choice was merlot. I started trying different varietals for fun. I still like pinot noir most.

I'm not sure if this is the case in other parts of the country, but even the discount grocery store has a sommelier on staff here. We've gotten some great tips from them. We are also lucky enough to live 10 miles from 35 different wineries, so it's a great opportunity to try other varietals.

Julie

[Misunderestimator]

20. It's hard to find a cheap and good merlot...

And I refuse to spend a lot on a bottle of anything, unless it's for a very special occasion or for a gift. This makes me very sad though that the price of Pinot Noir is climbing, and because of THIS stupid film? :grr: I've always been able to find great, reasonably priced pinot noirs, and have rarely had a bad one (merlots on the other hand... are REALLY hit and miss at the cheaper end of the scale, I hardly ever buy them anymore). Did I say how much I hated that movie?

[bleedingheart]

28. tell me...why did you hate the movie?

I hated it too...but I like to know why others hated it as well...

[Misunderestimator]

30. I found it arrogant and boring and needlessly long.

seriously, I found no redeeming qualities about it at all... I nearly fell asleep, but forced myself through it simply because I thought I must be missing something. A couple of middle-aged guys acting like pseudo-intellectual teenagers... blech.

[Beetwasher]

23. Night Train Does It For Me

Either that or gasoline.

[bleedingheart]

27. oh a connoisseur ...

[EstimatedProphet]

24. My favorite so far is Heitz Cellars Grignolino

http://www.appellationamerica.com/wineryPage.aspx?wineryID=1614
I had a bottle of '98-damn good stuff!

[bleedingheart]

25. I love wine but didn't like that movie

perhaps it is because I didn't like the two male lead characters....the jerk actor who wants to get a last screw or two before settling down with his wealthy beautiful bride and the wine snob who steals from his mother to take the jerk on a holiday before the wedding...oh yay...what fun...

What I have learned about wine I have learned by experimenting and from friends...