Italian Rosé Made With Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

Another lunch at Eataly, another fine Italian wine to come home with me. Cirelli Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo 2023 may not be everyone's idea of a great rosé, but I liked it.

It is made from organic Montepulciano d’Abruzzo grapes, berries destemmed, vinified in stainless steel, and aged for four months in that steel. Cerasuolo means "cherry-red," which is a pretty fair description of the wine's color, achieved through a very brief maceration period where the juice takes on the color from the red grape skins. Alcohol is quite restrained at 12% abv and the cost is a bit higher than you may like to pay for pink wine, $21 at Eataly in Los Angeles. I think it's worth breaking the $20 barrier.

This wine has a reddish copper color, very much like a rosato. The nose is dominated by an earthy, herbal note, but the red fruit shines through nicely. On the palate, those cherry and strawberry flavors come through strongly. The acidity is decent enough for pairing with something like pork or fish. It is maybe a bit pricey for a typical rosé drinker, but I give it high marks. I'll be pairing it with leftover turkey and ham sandwiches on Black Friday. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Halloween Haunts

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌ See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ ‌‌‌‌‌movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌  The jack-o-lantern on the porch has not yet been completely consumed by the squirrels, so we're in the mood for a few scary movies.  There will be wine pairing opportunities, of course.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for Wes Craven. His 1996 scarefest, Scream, was the start of a mega-franchise. Scream was followed by Scream 2, Scream 3, Scream 4, Scream, Scream VI, Scream 7, and a TV series. That second Scream, by the way, is the one from 2022. They apparently had something against the number 5. Then they developed a thing for Roman numerals, but it only lasted for one picture.

Written as a satire of slasher movies, Scream revived the genre after it had been back-burnered for a few years.

Starring David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, Rose McGowan, and Drew Barrymore, Scream was like The Breakfast Club gets killed. It's a good watch on Friday the 13th, even better on Halloween, and perfect if you happen to live on Elm Street.

The Farm Winery in Paso Robles' Adelaida District makes Primal Scream, a Rhône blend of Syrah and Grenache, heavy on the Syrah. We all scream for Syrah. It sells for around $45. 

Macabre, from 1958, is a William Castle fright flick. Movie-goers were given a Lloyd's of London life insurance policy, in case they died of fright while watching the movie. I don't think Lloyd's was left on the hook for any payouts. 

The tortured script features a rich man, his two daughters, and a convoluted series of gimmicks designed to steer the rich guy's fortune to a ne'er-do-well. The whole mess wraps up with a hopelessly flat climax. They say the picture was made for less than a hundred grand and brought in five million dollars. I'll need a serious conversation with the accountants before I'll believe that.

There is a $6,000 Chardonnay called Macabre from Burgundy's Auxey Duresses village. I hope they're not depending on my check to keep the Halloween decorations lit. Let's go slumming with Melodramatic Macabre, available at your local big box store for a lucky $13. It comes from a region called California. How exotic. Hey, it won double gold at the Orange County Fair.

1964's Onibaba is not really a good Halloween film, in my estimation. It might be better for the Japanese New Year. Onibaba kinda makes me want to see Rashoman for the fortieth time. It also kinda makes me want a big bowl of soba noodles, but we can't have everything.

An old woman and her daughter kill soldiers in a Japanese civil war set in medieval times, which I guess is the sort of thing that happened back then. They strip off their armor to sell, and throw the dead bodies into a pit. It is pretty brutal, but hardly the stuff of a movie for Halloween. Where's the shack full of chainsaws? Where's the creepy phone call? Where's the guy in a mask? Oh, wait, there is a guy in a mask. You just don't want to see what's underneath it.

The term onibaba refers not only to a Buddhist morality tale, but to Japanese ghost stories in which women are depicted as monsters. Personally, I don't hold with that sort of talk, but then I've never been a ninja warrior. Trying hard here to not be culturally appropriative. 

One scribe of the day called the movie "a potpourri of ravenous eating and blatant sex." Modern critics have a more accepting view. While ravenous eating and blatant sex sound like a good movie to me, I'd like a bottle of wine included. 

Michelle Kazumi Sakazaki makes wine in Napa Valley. To honor her heritage, her Kazumi Wines is the first American brand to grow and produce wine from the ancient Japanese grape, Koshu. The Kazumi Napa Valley Koshu is in its third vintage, and it sells for $65.

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A Bargain Wine That Just Misses The Mark

It's Trader Joe's time again. I can't help myself. Every time I need some nuts, soap, chips, or salsa, I end up bringing home a couple of bottles of wine. The market often sells special label wines which can only be found there. They generally turn out to be pretty good. At least I have had good luck with their wine bargains.

The 2024 Maison Barboulot Chardonnay-Viognier will get your attention. The label is said to be inspired by the classic look of French wine labels, but there are grape names in giant script, which is definitely a departure for wine bottles en Francais. 

The grapes in question are 70% Chardonnay and 30% Viognier, harvested from vineyards in the Languedoc region. The back label notes that these vineyards are "nestled at the foothills of the Black Mountain Range." The region is the Pays d'Oc IGP. Alcohol clicks 13% abv and it sells for just $6 Trader Joe's. 

This wine is straw colored. Its nose gives up strong aromas of stone fruit laced with oak. There is a floral aspect in there, but it has to fight its way past the peach, pear, and apricot notes. The palate is fairly tame. Pear, apricot, and oak dance together again. It's a pleasing taste, but fairly straightforward. The low level of acidity prevents it from being a good wine for pairing with food. I used it for cooking a lemon-butter sauce and was pleased. It will also serve as a poolside sipper when given a nice chill. 

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Field Blend From Portugal

Field blends are terrifically interesting wines. Grapes of different varieties, all growing together, harvested together, and vinified together, present a blend that would be difficult to attain by the usual separately blended methods. 

The 2021 Antonio Madeira Ainda is a red wine from Portugal, the Dao region and its high-quality sub-region Serra da Estrela. It has, according to online reports from Madeira's reps, about 40 different grape varieties in it. I'd like to name them all, but I don't know them. The vineyards reportedly contain some 45 varieties. I would love to know how they determined which five didn't make the cut. 

I do know that about three-quarters of this field blend are red grapes, while a quarter are white. All the grapes were destemmed and cold macerated for about five days. Then, 15 days of spontaneous fermentation and eight months of aging in tanks. The wine is unfined and unfiltered and was treated with low sulfur. Alcohol hits only 12% abv and the retail price is $38.

This wine is tinted a fairly dark purple in the glass. The nose has aromas of red fruit, like plums, currant, and cherries. There is a hint of anise in the sniff, too. The palate is intriguing. There are flavors of black cherry, licorice, and cassis, but with a bit of a rustic edge. I don't know what tree bark tastes like, but something here makes me think of it. And, there is a faint reminder from my childhood: cough syrup. If I make the wine sound bad, I'm sorry. I intend only to accent its unique and fascinating qualities. 

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Blood Of The Vines - ANTZ

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌  ‌‌‌See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌ ‌This week, a little insectual healing. We will pair wines with movies about ants. You can take these wines on a picnic, but don't hold us responsible for what happens after you've unfurled the blanket.

Charlton Heston and Eleanor Parker star in the 1954 creature feature, The Naked Jungle.  As a teen, I bought a wallet that had a picture of Parker inside it. She wasn't naked, nor was there a jungle in the background. I kept that picture in my wallet, since it would be years before my nerdiness allowed me to have an actual girlfriend. I have no such connection with Heston.

Parker plays a mail-order bride, of sorts, a situation with which Heston seems to be as delighted as his gruff character will allow. When he finds out she is a widow, though, that's where he draws the line. Stating that all of his possessions are new, none used, he has a bit of a tantrum, the kind men have when they aren't allowed to have exactly what they want. They eventually make the marriage work, as I rip up the picture in my wallet.

Is it just me, or do the ants in Jungle pose a less than exciting threat? They're big, I guess, on an atomic scale. But they're not huge, by sci-fi standards. Depicting a 30-mile wide swath of the tiny creatures must have been a big challenge for director Byron Haskin back in the pre-CGI Eisenhower years.

Naked Wines for The Naked Jungle? Sure. It's a wine club disguised as a crowdfunder disguised as a flex account for wine. Be an Angel and sign up. 

Empire of the Ants is a 1977 sci-fi directed by Bert I. Gordon. Now we're talking. Big ants. Big sci-fi ants, from the guy known as the king of monster creatures. The script was loosely based on an H.G. Wells short story. I say "loosely" because the ants got big from chowing down on radioactive nuclear waste. 

Joan Collins and Robert Lansing were two of the people on a boat trip to show off a planned beachfront project to the developer's clients. Just as ants have ruined many a picnic, these mutant ants spoiled the show. 

The bugs communicated through pheromones, a chemical substance that not only allowed them to share their thoughts with each other, but also allowed them to take over the townsfolk, enslaving them. Pheromones proved to be even more effective than the whips used by our founding fathers to keep their plantations going. 

If only I could find a pheromone wine to pair with Empire. Wait a minute, it says here my wish has been granted. Japanese winemaker Osamu Uchida works in Bordeaux to produce his Phéromone red blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. It's organic, so there's no need to worry about radioactive nuclear waste. Watch out for those pheromones, though. It sells for about $60.

The trailer blazes the words: Terror - Horror - Excitement - Mystery - THEM! Never has an acronym so accurately described its subject. Them! was the first giant insect movie, and still stands as the best. TFH guru Joe Dante credits this movie with scaring the preteen crap out of him, and he's not alone.

When I first saw this classic sci-fi movie, I didn't know the meaning of needing a drink. Today, I do. It's a wonder this film didn't make me seek out my parents' wine stash years earlier than I eventually did. Water - Is - Never - Enough.

Giant mutant ants are scary, but in the coastal community where I was raised, giant mutant crabs might have been more expected. Giant mutant crabs would have been a welcome addition to the seafood buffet in my hometown. "Djya see thuh size uh them thangs? And only $10.95!"

Pairing a wine with insects is tricky. I'm guessing a white wine with a lot of acidity would work well, unless the insects are chocolate covered. Try a Port, in that case. Maybe for Them! we could borrow a page from Monty Python and choose a wine that's good for hand-to-hand combat.

Or we could go to Anthill Farms Winery of Healdsburg. Their Campbell Ranch Vineyard Pinot Noir is from the Sonoma Coast town of Annapolis. Oh, if it had only been ANT-apolis! The cool, coastal conditions there are great for growing Pinot Noir grapes, and for keeping away giant mutant ants. $53.

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Too Late For Rosé? Never

It may be getting late in the year for some, but I'm still a rosé guy. I will be all year. The 2024 Le Rosé Ile de Conas is labelled as a Pays d'Oc IGP, which is largely the Languedoc-Roussillon region in the south of France. Winemaker Paul Mas is renowned in the Languedoc for high quality wine. This is a special budget label he makes for Trader Joe's. 

The grapes are grown quite near the Mediterranean, 25% Grenache Gris, 25% Grenache Noir, 20% Caladoc, 15% Pinot Gris, and 15% Cinsault. I had to run to the internet to find out about the Caladoc grape. It is a red grape, a cross of Grenache and Malbec. It is usually employed in a blend to lend color and heft. Alcohol for Le Rosé Ile de Conas checks in at 12.5% abv and it cost $8 at Trader Joe's.

This wine has a light pink onion skin color. Its nose is full of strawberry aromas, stems and all, plus some cherry and herbal notes. The palate is full, more so than a typical French rosé. The red fruit is abundant, as are minerals, and the acidity is somewhat tame. Aperitif or poolside sipping would seem appropriate, but pairing with a fruit salad or vegetables is not outside the realm of the possible.

 

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Paso Robles Zinfandel For Pan And Glass

Only cook with a wine you would drink on its own. That's what Julia Child told us, and I believe it. Cook with good wine, and your food will taste good. Blah wine, blah food. But don't break the bank. I spend $10-$15 on a bottle for cooking. Of course, I get to enjoy some of it, too.

I made crockpot short ribs with the 2022 Paso Zinfandel and was completely happy with the flavor it imparted. It made a hell of a gravy, too. It's made by Vine to Table Vineyards of Santa Maria, using organic grapes grown in Paso Robles. Alcohol hits 14.8% abv and it cost me $17 at Whole Foods Market in Los Angeles.

This wine has a medium-dark garnet tint in the glass. The nose offers ripe cherry, strawberry, and raspberry aromas, with a hint of currant, mint, and black pepper. The palate shows red and black fruit, a pepper note, vanilla, and firm tannins. It has a bold flavor profile, which I like when cooking with red wine. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Remembering Diane Keaton

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌  ‌‌‌See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ ‌‌‌‌‌movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌  This week, we remember the work of Diane Keaton, with a wine pairing for each film.

Looking for Mr. Goodbar is the 1977 film that was based on the real-life murder of a woman. Keaton played the role to the hilt. She was a nice girl in the daytime and a sexual thrill seeker at night. Spoiler alert: her taste in men was her downfall. This character wrote the book on "good girls like bad boys."

Her string of one night stands was adventurous, if maybe ill advised. If you're looking for Mr. Gere, you'll find him as one of her dangerous liaisons. In theaters, you could hardly hear the dialogue over the audience collectively muttering, "Girl, get outta there."

The film was the talk of the town that year, but Keaton did not get an Oscar nomination for her performance. That's because Annie Hall happened. That movie not only brought her a nice piece of hardware, it let her play a character who was a lot less likely to die during sex.

As luck would have it, there is a wine called The Keaton Red Blend. It is a combination of Zinfandel, Syrah, and Petite Sirah sourced in California's North Coast area. It sells for around $20. If you can't find it, keep looking.

From 1977, Annie Hall gives us Woody Allen's take on his failed relationship with Keaton. We wouldn't learn until years later just how failed his relationships could be. This was pre-scandal Woody, though, and everyone fell in love with Annie Hall.  

The movie taught us how to have a great date involving lobsters, what to do if you forget your mantra, where to look for Marshall McLuhan while standing in line for The Sorrow and the Pity, how you can bond with others over killing spiders, and how to win the Truman Capote look-alike contest.  It also taught us that even though love may fade, it's an awful lot of fun while it's shining.

Champagne goes great with lobster. It actually goes great with practically anything, and it makes a great impression. Try Champagne Laurent Perrier for about $75.  

1982's Shoot the Moon is one of those movies you can watch if you feel you've been a little too happy lately. It features Keaton and Albert Finney as a couple whose relationship has hit the rocks. For just the two of them, it might be relatively easy to split. But there are the gaggle of kids to consider, and that makes things a lot more difficult. 

A divorce, they say, is hardest on the children. They don't like going to the dentist at all, but at least there may be a treat afterward. Watching mom and dad fight over custody is worse than the cavity, and the lawyer doesn't give lollipops. 

Shoot didn't earn its keep at the box office, probably because it's such a downer. Keaton and Finney act their asses off, though, and the film is well respected today. If viewing it drives you to drink, I have a suggestion.

Washington state's Descendant Cellars has a Syrah called Rocky Relationship, which should do nicely for Shoot the Moon. If you find that you simply can’t hold back while watching, cry until your tears taste like Syrah. $45 

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A Grape In Trouble

The Arbois AOC is in Jura, in the French hills north of Revermont. Jura gets its name from the Jura mountain range, which extends into Switzerland. The Poulsard grape is grown primarily in Jura's clay soil, which has a high marl content. As red grapes go, Poulsard has very low levels of the phenol containing color. This means we get a pale red wine, a rosé, or even a white wine. Don't let the lack of color cool you. Poulsard has a very vibrant flavor.

Lou Amdur, of Lou Wine Shop in the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles, told me that he is worried about the Poulsard grape. Once the most widely planted grape in Jura, it is now in second place. It is difficult to grow, as it tends to bud early and is susceptible to frost. Amdur says the 2023 yield was cut nearly in half due to hot weather. This fragility, combined with shifting trends in the wine industry, is what has him wondering how much longer we will have Poulsard wines readily available.

The 2023 Domaine Ligier Arbois Poulsard has alcohol at 13% abv and sells for about $25.

This wine does color up lightly, a bit darker than a rosado but lighter than a Pinot Noir. The nose is powerful, herbal and earthy, with a funky note thrown in to keep it fun. There's raspberry, strawberry, and cherry aplenty. The palate is fruity, but it has a savory edge to it. Acidity is zippy and the tannins are serviceable. I would have it with chicken, pork, even a piece of fish. 

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If Mencia Wine Is From Portugal, It Must Be Jaen

The 2020 Taboadella 1255 Jaen Reserva Dao is a Portuguese gem. The 1255 on the label is a nod to the origin of the village, according to records. Some think, however, that the place dates back to the 1st century. Winemaking artifacts reveal some of the oldest wine technology in the Dao.

The wine is made from 100% Jaen grapes, a Portuguese variety which is known in Spain as Mencia. Taboadella Reserva was aged for nine months, 20% in new French oak barrels, 80% in second-use barrels. Alcohol tips 13.5% abv and the retail price is $35.

This wine is medium-dark in the glass. The nose is rich with raspberry and blueberry aromas, while the palate shows dark fruit as well. There is a touch of oak, but it is not at all overdone. The tannins are somewhat fierce upon opening, so let it breathe a bit. The acidity is mouth-watering and the finish is lengthy. Taboadella begs for a thick, juicy steak. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Rooms With A View

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌  ‌‌‌See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ ‌‌‌‌‌movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌  This week, we make room for roomy movies. We'll make room for some wine pairings for them, too.

 From 1986 we have A Room With a View, the theatrical release, not the TV movie. Yes, but it was a British TV movie. Doesn't that count for extra? I guess not. The big screen version was nominated for a large handful of Academy Awards, but only three were bestowed upon it. Only three. One of them was for Best Costume Design. Keep in mind, for your next opportunity to gamble on the Academy Awards, if a British period piece is in the running, it takes home a costuming Oscar. Bet the screening room on it.

The film centers on a young British woman's trip to Italy. She and her traveling companion don't like the view from their hotel room in Florence, which is handy, since it relates directly to the movie's title. But it would seem to me that if you're looking out of any hotel room in Florence, you've already got the majority of other hotel rooms beat. Even if it's not facing the Arno River.

In your pensione minibar, you won't find very many exotic choices, but often there are reliable brands in there. If you're staying in a Florence pensione, go Tuscan. You shouldn't have trouble finding Ruffino's Chianti Superiore.

The Bed Sitting Room is a 1969 British black comedy directed by Richard Lester. You no doubt remember him as the guy who directed The Beatles to silver screen stardom in A Hard Day's Night and Help! A clue to the new direction.

In The Bed Sitting Room, he employed a raft of British comedians, like Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Marty Feldman, and Spike Milligan. The movie is nothing if not absurd. Lester called the script, such as it was, "a completely lunatic sketchbook of surrealism." That really sums it up well. 

The setting is post-apocalyptic London, after a catastrophic nuclear war. The story, if we can call it that, revolves around one ridiculous idea after another. One critic of the day recommended it to fans of Monty Python's Flying Circus, although not wholeheartedly. It may well be a film representation of Magritte's The Son of Man painting. Offbeat, satirical, weird. 

I'll recommend a wine pairing, which should be consumed in full before viewing, so the humor has a better chance of hitting home. Realm Cellars has a proprietary blend called The Absurd. The winery says it may be made from one grape or five, depending on the vintage. It's a Napa Valley product, but the website leans starkly Brit. Their fascination with Shakespeare is clear, although filtered through a Picasso lens. Oh, and the bottle costs more than $150, which may be the height of absurdity.

Let's go back to hotel rooms for the 1938 Marx Brothers classic, Room Service. It's the only Marx Brothers film that wasn't written especially for them. It features two other rarities: Chico doesn't play the piano and Harpo doesn't play the harp. Don't worry, Groucho still works in plenty of his trademark one- liners. 

The script was based on a play, and the scribes of the day felt the Marx Brothers didn’t add much to the experience, but admitted they didn’t hurt, either. You can expect the usual round of Marxist humor, by which I mean slapstick and farce, based on plenty of confusion and deception.

Is it worth a viewing? Did you shoot an elephant in your pajamas? How that line got in my copy, I'll never know.

Do Not Disturb Wines won't be hanging on your room's door handle. The Room Service Pinot Noir will, however, connote the laissez faire attitude of the winemaker. The grapes come from a Sonoma County vineyard, on the eastern edge of Dry Creek Valley, if you want to get finicky about it. It sells for a little under $30.

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Cookin' With Aglianico

Here's yet another of those bargain wines from Trader Joe's. Julia Child once said that one should never cook with wine you wouldn't drink on its own, and that's a great rue of thumb. I think it was W.C. Fields who said "I cook with wine, and sometimes I add it to the food." Today, it's the 2024  Epicuro Aglianico Puglia IGP.

Freshness and ripeness comes courtesy of the aging process in steel tanks rather than oak. I bought this wine for cooking, but I enjoyed some while the sauce was simmering. I always try to have a red Italian wine on hand for pasta sauce. Alcohol checks in at 13% abv and the price can hardly be beaten, $6 at Trader Joe’s.

This wine is fresh and fruity. The medium ruby tint looks like Pinot Noir. The nose gives red and black fruit aromas, while the palate brings cherries, blueberries, and blackberries to the forefront. It is a clean sip, with no oak coloring the fruit and gentle tannins that make for a nice wine to chill, if you want. 

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A Spanish Rosado, Redux

Today, we will revisit a Spanish pinkie. And no, I'm not referring to a member of Spain's Communist Party. It's a pink wine, y'all. 

I had an earlier vintage of the El Terrano Garnacha Rosado about five years ago. One of the Whole Foods beverage guys called it one of the choice wines from the Whole Foods "rosé garden."

Produced as a Vino La Tierra de Castilla, this pink wine is composed of mostly Garnacha grapes. They are grown in Cariñena, in the Aragon region of northeast Spain. Traditionally, the wines in that area were heavy on the alcohol, but winemakers began to go more for balance a couple of decades ago. This entry comes in at 12.5% abv and it sells at Whole Foods for about ten dollars.

The Spanish wine has an elegant copper-pink color. The nose is not exactly overpowering, but offers up some pleasant strawberry and cherry aromas. There's a slightly funky herbal tint, too. On the palate, the medium weight is abetted by an acidity that is a bit brisker than I remember it being. Red fruit flavors ride out front, while a barely chalky minerality makes things a little more complex. It serves well as an afternoon sip or a companion to a salad or sandwich. It will be a great pair with some leftover ham or turkey sandwiches on Black Friday. Stock up. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Claudia Cardinale Week

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌  ‌‌‌See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ ‌‌‌‌‌movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌ This week, we remember another fallen great, Claudia Cardinale.

Cardinale starred with Burt Lancaster in The Leopard, a 1963 epic historical drama about the turbulent times in Italy during the 19th century. When a film is called "epic," it means it's really long. 

When director Luchino Visconti hit the stopwatch after the credits, it read 3:25. That's hours and minutes, by the way. He said, "Whoops," or whatever whoops is in Italian, and trimmed ten minutes off. Like that made a big difference. I mean, there's a 46-minute ballroom dancing scene! Oof, madone!

Every time someone takes control of the reels of this movie, another ten minutes disappears, like witness protection. I think it's down below three hours now. Don't let that cable sports channel get hold of it. They condense Dodger games down to an hour. Come to think of it, trimming a Dodger game so the bullpen doesn't appear is not a bad idea.

Well, so it's a long movie. That means all the more time we get to look at Claudia Cardinale, so I'm not complaining. I hear that some people really like the way Burt Lancaster looks, too.

If it doesn't seem like you've been sitting down for three damn hours, it may be because the film is so damn beautiful to look at. One of our more enlightened TFH gurus said, "Every frame is a painting." At least not one of those paintings with eyes that follow you around the room.

The Leopard is set in Sicily, so you can probably guess where my wine pairing is headed. About a year ago I had the pleasure of sipping the 2020 Regaleali Lamùri Nero d'Avola, made from Sicilian grapes, dark and powerful, for just $16. 

1968's Once Upon a Time in the West was directed by the great Sergio Leone. Not only do we get Claudia Cardinale here, we also get a soundtrack by Ennio Morricone. Finest kind. 

Uh oh, another epic movie. It's more like epic-lite. The Italian version of this one clocked in at nearly three hours, but the American release was just over two hours. There's probably no intermission, so let's all go to the snack bar before we take our seats.

The wine pairing for Once Upon comes from the wild west of Italy. At least the wild northwest. Riva Leone's Barbaresco has its Nebbiolo roots in Piedmont. Retail: $25.

It would be great if 8 ½ was the middle part of Federico Fellini's Numbers Trilogy, the one between 8 and 9, wouldn't it? But I'm not allowed to just make up stuff here. Who am I, Il Presidente?

The film was shown at Cannes in 1963 to what is described as "almost universal acclaim." Almost? I guess he got screwed by the fascist judge. 

Fellini used this film as a mirror, albeit a sort of funhouse mirror. It's a movie about making a movie, but the movie they're making is the one you're watching. Always remember, if you want people to think you're a genius, make yourself as incomprehensible as possible.

Varvaglione 12 e Mezzo Primitivo Salento, a bright red wine from Puglia, the sun-soaked heel of Italy's boot. Twelve e mezzo is Italimerican for 12 ½, which makes it the biggest stretch yet for a wine and movie pairing in this space. But records are made to be broken. Drink it, dream it, get lost in it. It's a $15 trip.

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Always Look On The Bright Side Of Wine

I love an unusual wine. I don't really care what makes it unusual, just as long as it offers me something different.

Tim Fulnecky, of the Paso Robles winery Mr. Brightside, is following his heart and making unusual wines. First, he exclusively uses Gamay Noir grapes grown in Monterey County's Arroyo Seco AVA. Second, they aren't all red wines. 

I picked up the 2023 Mr. Brightside Gamay Noir, Blanc at Joan's on Third in Los Angeles. I knew nothing of the winery, but I bought it specifically because it was different. A white wine made from Gamay grapes? I had to find out what this even was. Or, as the kids say today, what even this was.

Here is what Fulnecky says on his website about making Gamay Noir, Blanc: "I practice minimal intervention winemaking with all of the wines I make. These grapes were harvested and brought directly to the winery to be pressed onto dry ice. After settling the juice, it was gravity racked to a stainless steel tank to ferment. It was a slow and naturally cool fermentation that lasted for 19 days. After fermentation it was immediately racked to stainless steel drums and sulfured to inhibit malolactic fermentation. It aged in stainless steel for 6 months before being bottled."

Just his description of the winemaking process tells us that we are in for something that's off the beaten path. And that's where I like to live.

Previous vintages had alcohol just over 13% abv, but the 2023 vintage is marked at 12% abv. The wine cost $28.

This wine has a yellow-gold color in the glass. The nose shows earthy notes of apricot and peach, with some Bosc pear appearing. On the palate, that fruit is dressed in salinity and abetted by a healthy zing of tangy acidity. It reminds me a bit of Trebbiano or Garganega wines, but with more character.

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A Bargain Orange Wine

Here is another bargain wine I spied when I was distracted while shopping for peanuts or chips. The Puppet is labeled as a Skin Contact Wine from the Central Coast, 2024 vintage. It "boasts the fragrance and elegance of a white wine with the texture, richness and depth of a red wine." The label offered a relative wealth of information, a nice surprise for a bargain wine. 

This array of grapes was fermented on the skins for 10 days, which is where the pink color originates. The grapes were grown in American Canyon, in southern Napa County. They are 33% Grenache Blanc, 25% Pinot Gris, 17% Pinot Blanc, 15% Chenin Blanc, 6.5% Grenache Gris, 2% Orange Muscat, and 1.5% Vermentino. That’s quite a roster, there. Alcohol hits only 11.5% abv and the cashier rang up $8 at Trader Joe's. 

The name, by the way, seems to come from the drawings of hand shadow puppets that adorn the label. It seems a curious way to catch the eye, but it worked.

This wine has a nice, rich color. It’s orange in copper kind of way. The nose is somewhat muted, but traces of cherry, lemon, tangerine, and peach are in there. The palate has a fresh acidity and centers the flavors on citrus minerality. It is a hearty rosé, and one that will pair nicely with a variety of meats and cheeses. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Robert Redford Week

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌  ‌‌‌See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ ‌‌‌‌‌movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌  This week, we remember Robert Redford, the guy every guy's wife says she would have married had she had the chance.

One of Redford's better films, which is a high bar, is The Candidate, from 1972. The dark political satire features Redford as the son of a former California governor who is thrown to the wolves. He is chosen to run against a formidable Republican opponent in what is considered an unwinnable congressional race. The steep odds make it unnecessary for him to cater to public opinion, so he gives California voters a piece of his mind. And they like it.

The political consultant who pushed him into the race now sees a possible win, so the candidate's message is pushed into the center. To everyone's surprise, Redford wins. At the victory party, he urgently asks his consultant, "What do we do now?" That's how the sausage is made, folks.  

The Jeremy Larner script won an Oscar, and prompted a later real-life candidate by the name of Dan Quayle to say that he patterned himself after Redford's character. Larner's open letter to Quayle explained that the movie "is not a how-to picture, it's a watch-out picture. And you're what we've got to watch out for." It’s too bad they don't give Academy Awards for open letters.

Lodi's Michael David Winery has never missed a gimmick label, so, we naturally turn there to get a pairing for The Candidate. Politically Correct is a blend of Bordeaux grapes grown in dear ol' California. In addition to the wacky label, the wine's good, too. At least it better be, at $50. 

It would happen this way: You may be walking one day and a car will slow down beside you. A door will open and someone you know - perhaps someone you trust - will smile and offer you a bottle of wine...

Redford may not be the spy in Three Days of the Condor, but he sure has the thrill-a-minute life foisted upon him. This guy can't pick up the mail without dodging bullets. 

Redford's character - a CIA researcher - wants to come in from the cold, only to find he's already in, and the air conditioning is stuck on 32. He's so cold he has to open the fridge to get warm. It's not paranoia if they really are out to get you.

Redford's code name is "Condor," and the tactics the government uses in trying to keep him quiet sure have him feeling like an endangered species. Things do heat up a bit for Condor when Faye Dunaway realizes things could be worse than playing hostage to a guy who looks like Redford.  

Now the car slows down, and the smiling man offers a refreshing drink of wine.  

Condor's Hope Vineyard is named for its location in Santa Barbara County where condors are released into the wild.  The winery releases big Zinfandels and Shiraz into the wild, but only 400 cases at a time.  Most of their wines sell for under $20.  They might be a little hard to find, but that's how condors are.  If you order some, you might want to get it sent by FedEx.

 In 1972's The Hot Rock, Redford starred in the story of a diamond heist which keeps going south, showing that even the best-laid plans can always blow up in your face. Take the making of this movie, for example. The critics thought it was good, but not great. The director, Peter Yates, said that despite an interesting story and a wonderful cast, the butts just didn't get into the seats. It's happened to the best of them.

As a tribute to the movie, punk rockers Sleater-Kinney named one of their albums after it, although I feel the film's catch phrase, "Afghanistan banana stand," would have been a more memorable name.

For The Hot Rock, let’s pair 19 Crimes wine with the film, since it seems like the band of criminals needed 19 chances to pull off their heist. They have a line of Snoop wines, Cali Red and Cali Rosé. The latter looks a lot like gin and juice.

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The Two Sides Of Lustau Vermouth

Vermouth is not just a bottle one waves over the glass for a dry martini. Lustau vermouths are blends of fine sherry wines, infused with carefully selected plants and botanicals. As such, I like to sip them on their own. You can mix them with gin or vodka if you like. 

Lustau's Red vermouth, Vermut Rojo, is a mixture of a dry, nutty Amontillado and a sweet Pedro Ximénez. The company lays out the botanicals they use: sage for subtle spiciness, gentian for added astringency, aromatic coriander, wormwood for bitterness, and orange peel for freshness and a blast of citrus fruit. Alcohol sits at 15% abv and it sells for around $25.

This vermouth has a bourbon brown color in the glass with red tones appearing. The nose is quite aromatic, full of botanicals, cilantro, oranges, and a prominent floral note. On the palate, a bright acidity carries the herbal flavors along in a refreshing way.

The dry Lustau vermouth, Vermut Blanco, is produced by mixing a crisp Fino sherry with a sweet Moscatel. On the botanical menu: marjoram, for citrus and balsamic notes, astringent gentian, rosemary's herbal note, along with wormwood and chamomile for bitterness. Alcohol rests at 15% abv and the retail price is around $20. 

This vermouth has a lovely golden color in the glass. Aromas of almonds, candied orange peel, and some spice adorn the nose. The palate shows a package of flavors that include orange zest, herbs, white balsamic, and a savory lanolin twist. The acidity is tingly and the finish is lengthy.

I don't sip vermouth often, but when I do, this pair from Lustau is a winner. I'm going to make it a point to have some for the holidays. I may even get a bottle of gin to keep them company. 

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Alpine Freshness in Italian Pinot Grigio

Northern Italy is known for its crisp, mineral laden white wines, especially Pinot Grigio. Mezzacorona has been turning out the taste of terroir for more than a century. 

The 2024 Mezzacorona Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie is grown on the limestone slopes of the Dolomite Mountains. The delle Venezie DOC covers a huge wine region which includes Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Veneto, and the province of Trento. This Pinot Grigio has alcohol at the usual 12.5% abv and retails for $11.

This wine has a pale green-gold tint in the glass. The nose shows pear, green apple, and floral aromas, while the palate brings a lot of citrus minerality. The acidity is fresh and lively. If it’s too late for summer weather where you are, don’t worry. This PG will do just fine on the holiday table, especially if you do a seven fishes meal. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Playing With Reality

Pairing‌‌‌ ‌‌‌wine‌‌‌ ‌‌‌with‌‌‌ ‌‌‌movies!‌‌‌  ‌‌‌See‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌hear‌‌‌ ‌‌‌the‌‌‌ ‌‌‌fascinating‌‌‌ ‌‌‌commentary‌‌‌ ‌‌‌for‌‌‌ ‌‌‌these‌‌‌ movies‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌and‌‌‌ ‌‌‌many‌‌‌ ‌‌‌more‌,‌‌ ‌‌‌at‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Trailers‌‌‌ ‌‌‌From‌‌‌ ‌‌‌Hell.‌‌‌ ‌ This week, we look at what is real and what is not, with an emphasis on what is not. There will be a wine pairing for each of the three films, if you choose to believe it.

F for Fake is Orson Welles' 1973 documentary about art forger Elmyr de Hory, if that is indeed his name. De Hory could spin a tale. He lied about his name, his age, his upbringing, and his police record. His entire existence was pretty much fabricated out of thin air. His hopes of making a living as an artist during the Great Depression indicate that he wasn't too sharp a tool in the first place. Oh, but he figured out how to make art pay. Turn it into crime.

It has been burned into our consciousness that crime itself does not pay. That's debatable. Welles has Clifford Irving as one of the people describing de Hory's life, which is a neat trick. Irving was the author of the supposed autobiography of Howard Hughes, a bit of deceit for which he spent time behind prison bars. Welles himself was a master faker with his War of the Worlds radio broadcast. That Halloween staple was created from fake news, back before the term had been co-opted to mean "uncomfortable truths."

Turns out F for Fake is fake itself, with Welles turning the documentary genre on its head. He creates a fictional story from real events, you know, like filmmakers do. Martin Scorsese borrowed the technique for his Rolling Thunder Revue movie. 

There's a company called Faux Wines which sells non-alcoholic wines for about the same price as a mid-range regular wine. Does that sound like a deal to you? Isn't non-alcoholic wine just called grape juice? Infamous wine-forger Rudy Kurniawan would probably beg to differ. Check out the doc Sour Grapes for his story. 

For F for Fake let's pair an actual wine, as far as we know. Could any wine from Forge Cellars be called a forgery? If we wanted to get cute, I suppose so. But this winery in New York's Finger Lakes region, Lake Seneca to be precise, specializes in real, honest-to-goodness Riesling in the $25 range.

With news you can trust, I guess, there is American Movie. The 1999 documentary follows Mark Borchardt as he tries to raise money to make a film. The task is made harder by the Midwesterner's incompetence and various personal problems. It's hailed as a hilarious picture, although I think some of the humor would be lost on anyone who has tried to get a film financed. 

The story told by the doc is true, and it's rather heartwarming, in addition to being pretty funny. When Borchardt's one pet project falls apart, he bounces to another in an effort to raise money to finish the first one. When you hear the phrase "the truth hurts," you might think of American Movie. 

The film won a documentary award at Sundance and is listed by the New York Times as one of the thousand greatest movies ever made. That may sound like an easy list to make, but some of my favorite movies aren't on it. 

Borchardt is from Wisconsin, and so is our wine pairing. Wollersheim Winery is run by a winemaker who escaped Beaujolais for the cold, American midwest. The Wollersheim wines focus on the Marechal grape, which is more like a Côtes du Rhône than a Pinot Noir. It sells for about $25. 

The Italian documentary, Mondo Cane, was considered shocking back in 1962. Its depiction of different cultures from around the globe exposed audiences to a pastiche of perversion, a smorgasbord of sensationalism, a wide world of weirdness. The depictions of racism and cruelty are still hard to watch today. However, many of the scenes were staged or taken out of context to provide maximum titillation. 

The film was so popular around the world that others followed in its exploitative footsteps. The genre of sensationalist pseudo-docs is now known as mondo films. The shock effect goes further than blending Sangiovese with Cabernet Sauvignon. How dare you! And you call yourself a Super Tuscan.

The Antinori Solaia is such a super wine, blending Cabernets Sauvignon and Franc with Sangiovese. Artificial Intelligence tells me that Solaia translates from Italian as "loft," or "attic," or "sunny vineyard." Or it could be a typo. I love the AI adventure. These grapes grow in soils which originated in the Pliocene period. That may not matter much to you, but when you pay $350 for a bottle of wine, you expect all the bragging rights that go with it.

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