Orange Wine From Three Unlikely Grapes

Le Clot l'Origine produces Le Trouble Fait, a natural orange wine from Marc and Caroline Barriot in the Roussillon region of southern France. Labeled as a Vin de France, non-vintage effort, the wine was made from 30% Muscat of Alexandria grapes, 30% Sauvignon Blanc, and 40% Syrah. Alcohol sits at 12% abv and the retail price is about $25.

The name Le Trouble Fait translates to the troublemaker, or one who stirs up trouble. The grapes were organically and biodynamically farmed to create a wine which is suitable for vegans.

This wine is cloudy in appearance with a peach-like tint to it. The nose is complex, with notes of watermelon rind, pineapple, green apple, and citrus. The palate is savory and tart. There are flavors of sour cherry, apricot, Meyer lemon, and pineapple juice. A cloak of salinity wraps around the flavor package. This is one of the more interesting wines I've tasted lately. I don't know if it's for everyone, but it is for me. I would like to pair it with a shrimp salad or even have it with an eggs-and-sausage brunch. Breakfast, even, if you don't have to go to work. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Revenge: A Dish Served Cold

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 get vengeful, as we pair wines with movies about getting even.

Denmark produced Riders of Justice in 2020. In case you didn't think the Danes had a good sense of humor, this movie should dispel that notion. It's an action/comedy based on two sides trying to get back at each other. You may think it's rather bloody for a comedy, or you may think it's kinda funny for an action flick. Either way, justice will be served. 

A case of mistaken identity starts all the action. By the time the error is realized, how do we stop it? More killing. More killing is the answer. And then unwrap some Christmas presents. That's how we stop it.

The Danes have been making wine from grapes for less than 20 years, but they have a history of cherry wine and mead, which are pretty expensive. Given that, let's keep looking for a suitable wine pairing. Carmen Delanz Carménère results from a case of mistaken identity. Carménère was known in Chile as Merlot until some diligent wine scientists uncovered the masquerade. It's a $30 bottle. 

2018's Mandy stars Nicolas Cage. Guess who's getting revenge here? Certainly not the long-suffering folk who waited patiently for decades to see Cage cast as a lumberjack with a grudge. Where's my crossbow?

The film didn't make a lot of money, which is too bad, since that's one of the main reasons for making a movie in the first place. Oh, you can say you're all about the magic of cinema. But just wait until you've released a couple of stinkers and see how easy it is to get that art film made.

This revenge pic pits our lumberjack against a cult and members of a hellish biker gang who are hallucinating on LSD. The movie has attracted a cult following, which is no surprise since, y'know, Nicolas Cage, lumberjack, vengeance. 

The Count's Revenge references Buena Vista Winery's founder, Count Agoston Haraszthy. He died in a river full of crocodiles in Nicaragua in the 19th century, so it's only natural that his descendants want some retribution. However, they exact this by putting a golden crocodile on the bottle, which I don't see as any sort of worthwhile comeuppance for the killer reptiles. At $200 a bottle, maybe we're the ones who should get even. 

If you were old enough to go into a theater by yourself in 1955, you likely remember sitting in the icy air conditioning, soaking up the scares from Gill-man in Revenge of the Creature. Younger folks *ahem* will remember the Friday night Fear Theater presentations on TV, or the double features on the Saturday kiddie show at the movie house down the street. The former always featured homemade popcorn in a big bowl, while the latter always featured Raisinettes and M&Ms bouncing off our heads. 

Revenge of the Creature was surely one of the highlights of 1955, along with The Honeymooners and "Speedoo" by the Cadillacs. It was a three dimensional fright fest which also went under the names Return of the Creature, and for those who didn't get the connection, Return of the Creature from the Black Lagoon. You have to really spell it out for some people.

In Revenge, Gill-man has apparently recovered from the hail of bullets he suffered in the original film and is incarcerated in an oceanarium to be studied by scientists. They make the critical mistake of bringing in a beautiful female researcher, and Gill-man falls in lust again. He can't help it, he's a sucker for a pretty face. It's terror in the city this time around, as nobody wanted to go back to the Amazon to shoot this sequel. 

Look for a fresh-from-Central-Casting Clint Eastwood here, as a young scientist trying to explain why there's a missing rat in his labcoat pocket. "You were going to try and blame the cat. Well, weren't ya, punk?"

Here is the perfect wine for Gill-man: Gillman Vineyard Clairet. Okay, so there's no hyphen. Any other complaints before we move on? This blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot can run anywhere from $60 to $100.

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Wines For The Calorie Conscious

If you are watching the waistline, Mezzacorona Ventessa has low calorie wines that you may enjoy pairing with diet dishes. 

The 2025 Pinot Grigio is from the Vignetti delle Dolomiti IGT, in the Dolomite Mountains. The term ventessa is described as a delicate wind that blows through the Alpine vineyards. The grapes are sustainably farmed and the wine is vegan and gluten free. Alcohol for both the white and the rosé versions are very low, at 9% abv and they retail for $11. 

This white wine has a pale straw tint in the glass. It's very clear. The nose is fruity and floral, the way you expect a Pinot Grigio to smell. The palate shows stone fruit, hints of citrus, and a note of minerality. It's not terribly complex, but it is tasty. Pair it with salads, seafood, or just sip it. 

The 2025 Mezzacorona Ventessa Rosé is also made from Pinot Grigio, just with more skin contact for the pink color. It shows more red fruit notes, but stays pretty much in the same lane of the white wine.

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I'm A Hog For This Super Tuscan Blend

Super Tuscans are not my first choice when it comes to Italian wines. That does not mean I won't enjoy one now and then. The 2024 Tenuto de Biserno Insoglio del Cinghiale is a Toscana IGT wine made up of 45% Syrah grapes, 28% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 7% other varieties.

The wine was fermented in steel tanks, then aged 40% in French oak barriques for at least four months, the remainder in steel. Tenuta de Biserno owner Niccolò Marzichi Lenzi  says the name "Insoglio" is a place where wild boars wallow in the Maremma region of Tuscany. Alcohol tips 13.5% abv and the wine sells for around $30. 

This wine is dark ruby in the glass. The nose shows black cherry, plum, and some spice. On the palate, fruit is forward with an earthy minerality following. The tannins are smooth, and the finish is long, with dark berries being the predominant flavor. I used this one for a pasta sauce, but it would also pair quite well with any beef or pork dish. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Fuller's Earth

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 are happy to feature three films from the late, great, Samuel Fuller. Unfortunately, I can claim no relation. We are happy to drink a toast to the man, with a wine pairing for each movie.

 Fuller wrote and directed The Big Red One in 1980. With Fuller directing and Lee Marvin starring, I'm sold already. It's a war picture taken from Fuller's own experiences in WWII. The Big Red One is the nickname of the 1st Infantry Division in which he served.

Fuller's tale was nearly three hours long, so United Artists, the distributor, took out the scissors and snipped it down to just under two hours. They did that without Fuller's consent, so imagine his surprise. After his death, the Reconstruction edit restored Fuller's sprawling vision. 

If you ask me, and demand a knee-jerk answer, I'd say I'm not a fan of war films. Then I would think of movies like M*A*S*H, Catch-22, Coming Home, and this one, and I'd have to revise my thinking. Hell, even White Christmas has a wartime setting and a dandy little tune about how much we love our commanding officer. 

Big Red opens with an American soldier in hand-to-hand combat with a German counterpart. He is told that the war is over, but he doesn't buy it. Later he finds out it was the truth. The story follows the soldier's bootsteps through the war and into a place where enemies turn into partners. 

The Fuller Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley Vineyards is a good one, if you can find it. Sadly, winemaker Bill Fuller passed away last year. The 2023 vintage is what remains. It's a $100 bottle, but very scarce.

1963's Shock Corridor was also written and directed by Fuller, who produced it as well. The story is Samuel Fuller through and through. A journalist commits himself to a mental institution in order to solve a murder in the hospital. He's the original man on the inside. 

The movie's one-sheet promises "sights you’ve never seen before," and it's likely true. The nymphomaniac attack and the lover/sister act are about as lurid as it got in the early '60s. Some of the scenes come off like a Fuller fever dream.

The experience of pretending to be insane takes its toll on our intrepid newspaperman. He gets the killer to confess and writes his story, but it turns out to be a hollow victory. 

Bottle shock in wine is a temporary condition, but shock therapy can be the gift that keeps on taking away. The movie Bottle Shock was about wines from Chateau Montelena in Calistoga, so let's go there. You may think it's crazy to spend $200 on a bottle of wine. Shocking, I know. But Montelena's flagship Cab is a taste worth experiencing. 

Pickup on South Street is a Cold War classic, written and directed by Fuller. It's not an ad for an F-150 for sale in Cerritos. It's the story of a small-time hood who picks the wrong pocket and ends up with microfilm secrets intended for the Commies. Okay, Richard Widmark. You're in the spy business now. 

An earlier version of the script was titled Pickpocket, but Darryl Zanuck thought that sounded too European. I don't know why that makes me laugh, but it does. The movie drew criticism from none other than J. Edgar Hoover, who claimed he didn't like the film's politics. Maybe he just wanted a better look at Jean Peters' wardrobe.

Sans Liege Winery of Paso Robles makes a 100% Grenache called The Pickpocket. Aged for two years in French oak, we hope it doesn't taste too European for you. It's a $50 bottle.

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A Field Blend Wine From Vienna

If you are a fan of field blend wines, those featuring different grape varieties that were grown intermingled and fermented together, you'll enjoy a Gemischter Satz wine from Vienna. That's what Austrians call a field blend. The 2025 Natural Red from the Fuchs-Steinklammer estate is a great example. Here's what the importer has to say about the winery:

"In 1989 Kurt Fuchs of the northern 21st district and Helene Steinklammer of the southern 23rd district, married and merged their two wine estates. Together, they are the culmination of hundreds of years of winemaking with family history dating to 1697. Joining their two estates also created the only winery in Vienna that both owns and cultivates grapes from both the northernmost region of Vienna as well as the southernmost region, allowing their family to make a wide range of styles of Gemischter Satz." Their sons Stefan and Alexander now make the family's trademark juice.

This bottle comes from the estate's northern Bisamberg Vineyard, a field blend of red and white grapes all grown and harvested together, then co-fermented after the grapes were foot crushed. Alcohol tips a light 11% abv and the wine sells for about $30. 

This wine has a light red tint to it, a shade darker than a rosado. The nose is also rather light, quite muted. There is some raspberry, some minerality, a hint of citrus, but not much there at all, really. The palate shows a little better, with ripe red fruit and an earthy streak. The mouthfeel sits somewhere between a rosé and a red wine, not too light and not too full. It’s a pleasant sip, and will pair nicely with a pork or chicken dish. 

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From The Volcano With Funk

Nerina Cardile is, like her grapes, native of and rooted in Sicily. A psychologist by trade, Cardile turned in her bust of Freud for a tractor that fits between the rows of grapes.

Her 2024 Vulcanica is made from 85% Nerello Mascalese and 15% Nerello Cappuccio grapes. This red, and a white indigenous blend, are the only two wines she produces. It's made with spontaneous fermentation, unfiltered and unfined. Alcohol sits at 13.5% abv and it sells for about $30.

This wine has a brick-red color to it, medium dark. The nose is quite savory. Let's be straight. It's kinda funky. Aromas of raspberry and plum are all but vanquished by the funk. Not that it's a bad thing. It's just a funk thing. Be ready. The palate lets a bit more of the fruit get loose, but you're not escaping the funk zone entirely. The savory experience pairs with an astringent acidity and medium firm tannins. This is what I think of as a country wine, one that packs a punch and doesn't worry about being pretty. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Big Adventures

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 enjoy three big adventures on film, and a wine pairing for each.

We'll open with Peewee's Big Adventure, from 1985, Tim Burton's debut in the feature film category. I was never a Paul Reubens fan, so I missed Big Adventure at the time and haven't seen it in the years since. I am a Tim Burton fan, but not even his graduation to Batman director could draw me into the world of Pee Wee. That won't stop me from toasting the film, though.

The adventure noted in the title is Pee Wee's quest to recover his stolen bicycle. Pee Wee's neighbor wants to buy the bike, Pee Wee won't sell, and the neighbor warns that he'll regret the move. Shades of My Mother the Car, with bad guy Avery Schreiber fixated on getting his hands on the car by hook or crook, mostly crook. 

There is a wine called Pee Wee. It’s a Nero d'Avola from Australia's Lino Ramble, in the McLaren Vale. Get your Pee Wee on for $30.

John Carpenter continued his fascination with Kurt Russell in 1986 with Big Trouble in Little China. Russell's truck driver character helps a friend recover his green-eyed fiancée after she was taken in San Francisco's Chinatown. His adventures have him underneath the city, where he meets a sorcerer, a magician, and delves into the world of martial arts. The big fight also contains some swell knife throwing, if you like that sort of thing.

Big Trouble kinda flopped at the movies, but it has maintained a legion of fans over the years.  Personally, I always want to hear Russell say, "The name's Plisskin," but I understand that sometimes we must move on.

Gerard Bertrand likes to putter around in his winery in the south of France, making delectable juice. His Trouble xp is a non-filtered, cloudy, organic, vegan wine. I know it sounds like I'm trying to talk you out of it, but it really is good. It's just $26 and it comes in three colors, red, white, and pink.

2008's Speed Racer is exactly what it sounds like. It's the movie version of the cartoon series of my childhood, which was very popular with my younger sister. It was probably popular with a lot of younger sisters. It had to be the introduction to anime for a gazillion kids, too, but I won't hold that against it. 

Half the cast of characters have Racer as part of their names, so it's nice that they use first names a lot. The Racer family runs Racer Motors, and scion Speed has gasoline flowing in his veins. 

Speed and all the other Racers (Racer X, Mom Racer, Pops Racer, etc.) delve into the dark world of racing corruption. A big corporation is fixing races, and those who care want to see that it stops. While we're at it, can we look into FIFA's red card corruption? That ref has got to go.

Emile Hirsch plays Speed, and you'll also enjoy Susan Sarandon as Mom Racer, John Goodman as Pops Racer, and Christina Ricci as Trixie, Speed's girlfriend. She's not a Racer. Yet. 

Adobe Road Winery has a line called The Racing Series. Owner Kevin Buckler married his passion for racing to his love of the grape. The wines - Redline, Shift, The 24 and Apex - are California-grown and sell from $50 to $80.

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An Alpine Red Wine From Northern Italy

White wines from the northern part of Italy are fantastic, but here is an Alpine red wine.

From Vigneti della Dolomiti IGT, in the Trentino-Alto Adige of northern Italy, the grapes for this wine are Schiava. They are also known as Trollinger or Vernatsch, depending on where you are at the time. Schiava grapes likely originated in the Trentino-Alto Adige region, as their growth has been recorded there since the 13th century. Alcohol hits a moderate 12% abv and it sells for less than $10 at Trader Joe's.

The 2024 Vola Schiava is light red, with a rusty tint to it. The nose has aromas of blackberries, plums, and blueberries, with a savory dash of earth. The palate is a fruity as you’d like, with strawberry, current, and licorice red rope flavors. The tannins are somewhat soft, which makes for a good sipping wine. Chill it for a hot summer day on the patio.

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Blood Of The Vines - Dragon Around

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 trio of films dabbling in dragons, to one extent or another. We also have some fire-breathing wine pairings for each.

Dragons Forever is a 1988 action/comedy martial arts movie from Hong Kong. It was directed by and starred Sammo Hung, which is one of the great names in the world, by the way. If I were named Sam, I would identify as Sammo in a Hong Kong minute. Jackie Chan also appears in the film.

The story centers on a fishery that is revealed to be the home office for a drug kingpin. The ruse was probably derailed when nobody complained about the smell. When I was a kid, we had a menhaden plant down the coast that stank to high heaven when the wind was right. We called it the fish factory, even though we knew there were no fish being produced there. 

The fishery sues a chemical company for polluting the water, the chemists send in a lawyer and his criminal buddies to try and dig up some dirt on the fish guys, and they discover the drug ring. Oh, and the drug kingpin is a martial arts expert. It had to happen. It would be a pretty dull courtroom drama if it didn't. 

No Shaoxing or Tiger bone wine for me, thanks. I would cook with Shaoxing, if I could find it anywhere. Let's pair a Washington state Riesling with Dragons Forever. Winemaker Charles Smith makes Kung Fu Girl, and it will pair well with all the Chinese takeout and Jackie Chan movies you can manage. It should run you about $12.

From 1961, Valley of the Dragons is a black-and-white sci-fi done on the cheap, just how we like our sci-fi. This flick is based on some Jules Verne material and was made from stock footage used in 1940's One Million B.C. In fact, TFH Chief Guru Joe Dante explains that Valley of the Dragons is "60-percent footage from other films, all of which are better than this one." Ed Wood must have been green with envy.

Two guys get swept from earth by a passing comet and deposited in what appears to be prehistoric time. I particularly like the dinosaurs, noted in the title as dragons. The one that's actually an armadillo is my super fave. 

The guys adapt quickly to their new surroundings and spend some time battling large insects that look like plush toys you might win at a county fair here on Earth. They also meet and fall in love with a couple of prehistoric cave babes. What with the easily defeatable bugs and the lusty ladies in this place, they decide to sit tight and wait for another comet to come around as their ticket home. Looking good, Hector. Feeling good, Denning. 

The wine made in Paso Robles at the Ancient Peaks Winery has the dust of another era on it. The oyster shells in the vineyards are remnants of a time when the land was a seabed. Their 2021 Whole Cluster Syrah is described as "out of this world." Fitting for a sci-fi. $60. 

Here's more comedic action from Hong Kong. Way of the Dragon came out in 1972, starring Bruce Lee. It was originally released in the US as Return of the Dragon. Oddly, Lee's next film was Enter the Dragon. That makes it sound like they were released out of order, but I don’t think that's the case. What does it matter, anyway? Bruce Lee is Bruce Lee.

Lee not only starred in but also directed this film. It was his first time in the director's chair, and he died not even a year after its release. Lee's character is in Rome, where he helps a restaurant owner who is being harassed by gangsters. Chuck Norris makes an appearance as a badass hired by the mob boss. The mob needed to hire a badass? A blond one? From Oklahoma? No. Norris fans can be satisfied that their hero offers no mercy and accepts none, either. 

Luigi Baudana makes a wine in the Langhe region of Italy that he calls Dragon. It's the symbol of courage, he explains, and that's what it took to design a field blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Nascetta, and Riesling. You can get it by bravely plunking down $25. 

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Gimme A Gavi

Rosa dell’Olmo is located in Piedmont. They produce Barbera d’Asti, Barbaresco, and Barolo wines, along with today’s feature, Gavi. Piedmont has produced wines since the 6th century, with modern styles emerging in the 19th century.

The Gavi wines are white, this one, the 2024 Rosa dell 'Olmo Gavi, is made solely from Cortese grapes. Alcohol sits at a restrained 12% abv and the price is $10 at Trader Joe's. 

This wine offers a nose that's floral, fruity, and full of minerals all at once. The pale straw color in the glass leads to a palate loaded with stone fruit and citrus minerality. The slight acidity makes for a nice, full mouthfeel. Steel fermentation gives a clean, brisk taste. Pair it with pasta primavera, salads, chicken, or fish.

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California Pinot Noir From Monterey County

California's Monterey County is thought to be a good region for Pinot Noir, with good reason. The weather is cool, just the way the grape likes it. The 2021 Talbott Pinot Noir is a good example of California Pinot. 

The grapes were grown in the Santa Lucia Highlands, the Sleepy Hollow Vineyard, to be precise. This Talbott estate vineyard is located on the northeastern edge of the AVA. Alcohol sits at 14.9% abv and it sells for about $43.

This wine shows a medium ruby color in the glass. The nose displays aromas of plum, blackberry, and black tea. On the palate, black fruit dominates, there is a cola note and some traces of coffee in the sip. Big fruit with a savory side is no surprise in a California Pinot Noir and it delivers here. Minerals play a large role, while the tannins are medium firm with an astringent quality. The finish is long and savory.

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Blood Of The Vines - Frankenheimer

Pairing wine with movies!  See the trailers and hear the fascinating commentary for these movies and many more at Trailers From Hell. This week, it's a John Frankenheimer party. Three Frankenheimer films and a wine pairing for each. 

Frankenheimer directed Dead Bang back in 1989. It has Don Johnson as a Los Angeles Sheriff's Department gumshoe who has to track down the killer of a deputy. There's also gunrunning and militant white supremacy in the mix, so it's a bit heavier than your typical action movie. Johnson was fresh from his rather lighthearted take on police business in Miami Vice, so he rolled down his sleeves and got to work.

Johnson also permed his hair for the role, to more closely resemble the real cop on which the story is based. He says it was an "interesting choice" because as the perm unwound over the shoot, he started looking, as he puts it, "sort of goofy-looking." No goofier, I would imagine, than pushing up the sleeves of your sport coat. At least that look became a fashion fad for a time. 

For a cop flick, how about a cop wine? Harbinator 2020 Cop Franc is a Cabernet Franc from the Red Mountain AVA, Ciel du Cheval vineyard. Pretty fancy for Washington state. It sells for around $50. 

From 1964, The Train has Burt Lancaster masterminding a ruse to keep the Germans from absconding with artwork looted from France during World War Two. The movie makes the real-life story a lot more interesting than it actually was. In reality, the art train was merely derailed by endless paperwork. Life may imitate art, but art jazzes up life so we'll pay to see it.

As it happens, the Nazis also tried to make off with wine from the best French vineyards. A similar ruse kept the wine safe in République française. All this has me wondering why the war lasted as long as it did if Hitler's boys were so easily outsmarted.

All this spy-type activity points directly to Cloak and Dagger Wines and their Paso Robles red blend, Subterfuge. It's a mix of grapes that would feel right at home in Bordeaux: Merlot, Malbec and Cabernet Franc, all for $49.

Seconds is from 1966. It's a psychological horror film, a bit of a sci-fi, and a dramatic change of pace for the star Rock Hudson. There's no Doris Day here, and rom-com is as far from the scene as it could possibly be.

Hudson plays a New York banker who undergoes a complete change of identity. His turn as a Malibu artist does not go well. It's worth remembering that it's not paranoia if they really are out to get you.

The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson was reportedly freaked out that the main character, Mr. Wilson, is swirling in doubt about his choices and that the beach plays a central role in Hudson's Malibu Ken makeover. They say Wilson didn't go to a movie again for a couple of decades.

Movie goers at the time didn't care for Seconds, and the film was booed at Cannes. Time has softened opinions to the point that it's now considered a cult classic.

A second wine is one made by a top-shelf producer, using grapes that were deemed unfit for the flagship wine. The second wine from Château Margaux is Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux. This Bordeaux second wine can give you a taste of the $1000 bottle for less than $200, depending on the vintage.

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Blood Of The Vines - Carquake

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're in the driver's seat for three films that owe their existence to the auto industry. We have wine pairings for each film, although we encourage you to wait until you're safely home before uncorking the bottle. Or unscrewing the cap. Or tearing open the box.

The Italian Job is a 1969 British caper with laughs. Michael Caine and Noël Coward got plenty of bravos for their parts as crooks trying to steal a truckload of gold bullion in Italy. It's worth remembering while dealing with explosives, that "you were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off." If you want more laffs, there is a wealth of comedic talent in the cast, including Bennie Hill.

The often copied Mini Cooper car chase should be used for entertainment purposes only. Do not try it at home, No matter how good a driver you think you are. You're not.

The wine pairing for a movie about Italian criminal activity should be one that was the subject of a crime, right? Several years ago, some nefarious types passed off cheapo wine as 2015 Bolgheri Sassicaia. A bottle costs close to $500. Just pray it hasn't had the doors blown off it.

In 1971's Vanishing Point, a stock car driver takes a bet to deliver a white Dodge Challenger R/T from Denver to San Francisco in 15 hours. If that sounds too easy, imagine doing that task with a police chase behind you. It doesn't sound like easy money now, does it?

It's said to be one of Steven Spielberg's favorite films, and it inspired Edgar Wright's 2017 car-a-palooza, Baby Driver. Vanishing Point vanished after only a couple of weeks in release, but it has since become a cult classic. It's an especially big trunk full of muscle car fun for people who go to the Friday Night Car Show at Bob's Big Boy.

Adobe Road Wines of Sonoma County has a full line of racing themed offerings. Their Redline Cabernet Sauvignon goes fast for $48.

The star in 1977's Grand Theft Auto is Ron Howard, who also directed it. But the big co-star is a Rolls Royce, which takes a beating throughout the film, a beating that's usually reserved for a demolition derby. Uh, spoiler alert. There is a demolition derby. The Rolls carries a young couple as they elope to Las Vegas, where there will be plenty of time for wine. 

A tip of the headset to the late L.A. legend The Real Don Steele, who has a role in the movie as, wait for it, a radio DJ. 

There are more Master Sommeliers in Sin City than in any other city in the world, so getting a recommendation shouldn't be a problem. Ordering that wine in a restaurant, if you're someone who looks a lot like Opie, means you'd better have your ID with you. For the Rolls Royce, only a Dom Perignon Champagne will do. At least at first. As the wear and tear on the vehicle mounts, you'll be looking for something cheap, maybe in a box. The Franzia Dark Red Blend is priced at $16 for a five liter box.

Nowadays people know GTA as a game, and in the GTA V edition, there is a virtual wine called Costa Del Perro, which translates to "coast of the dog," but you can only have that wine virtually, as a player in the game. 

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Wine Tasting In Los Olivos - St. Avalo Wines

It was a cold and blustery day in May, the threat of rain hanging in the dark clouds above Santa Barbara County. I was looking for the tasting room of Bien Nacido Wines, but found that they had closed up their Los Olivos shop and were now pouring at the winery in the Santa Maria Valley. Fortunately, their spot was now occupied by the tasting room for St. Avalo Wines.

Their vineyards are in the Santa Ynez Valley, just a couple of miles away, but my visit to the tasting room held many pleasures. The wines I tasted were of the 2022 vintage except the rosé, which is 2025.

My host Oliver, and his dad, are co-owners of the estate. They bought the property in 2007 and went full estate with their grape selection in 2015. Their wines are delicious and the tasting experience is a fun time. 

Their Sauvignon Blanc has a funky, floral nose and a fresh fruit palate. Pinot Grigio is not a grape to which I gravitate, but the St. Avalo version was striking. A totally earthy nose brought the funk, while the stone fruit on the palate was savory.

The rosé was made from Tempranillo and Grenache grapes, grown in nearby Foxen Canyon. Light extraction brought a pale pink color. The Gamay Noir was aged for a year in neutral French oak. It presented a nose that was earthy, barnyard, even. The palate, however, was light and fresh. The St. Avalo Pinot Gamay saw 24 months in new French oak. Big cherry notes on the nose and a bright and breezy palate with an herbal touch. 

The St. Avalo Dornfelder - yes, they grow Dornfelder - has a huge nose with prominent clove and eucalyptus. The palate is tartly cherry and somewhat minty. 

Their Sangiovese was oaked for two years but still has a light cherry nose and a candied palate. The tannins are nice on this CalItalia bottling. Their Nero d'Avola shows extreme earth on the nose while displaying a sweetly herbal palate.

The Cabernet Sauvignon has aromas that range from herbal to chalky. There is a minty note on the palate here as well. Aged in new French oak for 36 months. 

The wine I was most attracted to was the St. Avalo 2022 Vermentino, Santa Barbara County, Los Olivos District. Alcohol sits at 12.3% abv and it retails for $35. The wine was aged for eleven months in stainless steel tanks, unstirred.

This wine is the color of yellow straw with a hint of green in it. The nose has the aroma of white flowers, nectarine, mango, and a salty mineral aspect. I don’t smell the ocean as I do with Sicilian Vermentino, but it’s nearly a match. The palate shows stone fruit, a touch of tangerine, and a streak of salinity. The acidity is mid-range and the finish is long. There is a nutty flavor that lingers after the sip. This is a beautiful wine. 

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Blood Of The Vines - Nightmare Cinema

Pairing wine with movies!  See the trailers and hear the fascinating commentary for these movies and many more at Trailers From Hell. This week, your worst nightmares get wine pairings. 

Butcher Baker Nightmare Maker was released in 1981 the first time around. You may have caught it in re-release, retitled as Night Warning. 

William Asher directed, and you may recognize his name from the early days of television. He directed Our Miss Brooks, I Love Lucy, and many other seminal series. He had a hand in Bewitched, too, on the TV screen. By the way, he was married to Elizabeth Montgomery at the time, everyone's favorite witch. Considering his sitcom beginnings, it's more than a little strange to see his talents go to a movie which features murder, incest, and homosexuality.

Jimmy McNichol got the starring role of Billy, the nice teenager who is gifted by the universe with some really terrible luck. Susan Tyrrell played the role of Billy's Aunt Cheryl, and she Baby Jane'd the hell out of it. There's a twist in the film, and as a result of it, you probably don't want to put Butcher Baker Nightmare Maker or Night Warning on your Mother's Day viewing card.

The Butcher Blaufränkisch hails from Burgenland, Austria. Don't fear the fränkisch, it's thought of as the Pinot Noir of the east due to its popularity in eastern Europe. In the US, some call it Lemberger. $25.

In 1994, Wes Craven's New Nightmare gave Freddy Krueger a new spin. In this seventh film in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Krueger is a fictional character who gets into the real world to torment those who are making movies about him. How meta. 

It is a kick to see the actors and others associated with the film series as real and fictional characters. Even as real people, they're still actors portraying real people, pretending to interact with their actor selves. Whoa, man, I think I need to sit down for a minute.

The Elm Street movies are undeniably popular. I mean, they just keep on coming. I'm not watching them, but someone is. They scare me too much. I sit with my hand over my eyes, waiting for the Carfax Fox to make everything all better. "Maybe I'm watching too much television," he realizes, way too late to do anything about it. How meta. 

For a Wes Craven production, let's sip a bottle from Craven Wines of South Africa. No relation. From Chenin Blanc to Syrah, the Craven line sells for around $20 a bottle.

Nightmare Cinema comes from 2018 and is a horror anthology featuring segments directed by, among others, TFH's very own chief guru Joe Dante. There are also works included by Alejandro Brugués, TFH guru Mick Garris, Ryūhei Kitamura, and David Slade.

Mickey Rourke plays the projectionist at a movie theater that shows films depicting the worst fears of the audience. Yeah, I know, you thought that was Melania. Well, strap yourself in and get set for segments on slasher killers, sex demons and an alternate reality experienced while waiting for a doctor's appointment. Hey, wait, that's actually happened to me. My insurance didn't cover it.

Washington state winery The Walls has a Tempranillo they call a Wonderful Nightmare, Hemingway's description of the running of the bulls in Pamplona. I'll leave that sort of thing to other fools. A Nightmare Cinema sounds dangerous enough for me. 

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Hooray! A Bargain Vouvray

Every time I go bargain hunting at Trader Joe's, my white wine thirst loves to find the Vignobles Lacheteau Vouvray. Any time I see Vouvray on a wine label, my eye is caught. This Vouvray is a semi-dry white wine from France's Loire Valley. Vouvray is an appellation, not a grape. Most of the white wines of Vouvray are made from Chenin Blanc grapes, as is this one. I've had this wine before, 2021 1nd 2023 vintages. This one is a 2024.

The French region of Vouvray is white wine heaven. Alcohol for this wine is quite restrained, at 11% abv, and it sells for less than $10 at Trader Joe's. I hope they keep it in stock, because I have a spicy shrimp dish on my radar for the coming week. 

This wine has a straw-yellow color in the glass. Its nose shows aromas of stone fruit, like peach, apricot, and white nectarine. There is also a hint of Meyer lemon in the sniff. The palate is just creamy goodness. The fruit flavors are joined by a savory minerality and salinity, which is overpoweringly wonderful. The acidity is fresh, but not razor sharp. Pair it with a spicy dish and thank me later. Spicy seafood would be perfect.  

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Blood Of The Vines - Down In The Valley

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 have three views of valley life, with a wine pairing for each. 

 First, let's go waaay down in the valley. The San Fernando Valley was home to a thriving pornography industry, back in the VHS days. 1997's Boogie Nights chronicled that era with maybe just a splash of celebration. It was written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, who also co-produced it. 

The film is a fascinating examination of 1970s SoCal porn. It provided Mark Wahlberg's big splash into movie stardom and gave us Burt Reynolds as the porn producer in a riveting role. For me, the movie is worth it just for a two-second montage in which Reynolds makes a drink, calls his dealer and snorts a line. That's some fine editing, there, friends. 

La Fiorita is the Italian wine project of former porn star Natalie Oliveros. Her Fiore di NO Brunello Montalcino has accumulated an impressive sheaf of reviews, and it sells for more than $100.

Valley Girl starred Deborah Foreman and Nicolas Cage back in 1983 as star-crossed San Fernando Valley lovers. The movie's one-sheet shows her pretty in pink and him bad in black. Well, as bad as a guy can look with no shirt and a necktie. It's an okay movie and it was decently received by critics and the general public alike. However, the funniest thing about the movie is the blurb describing it as "loosely based on the tragedy Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare." That’s a bit of a reach. And did the blurb writer really think it was necessary to attribute Shakespeare?

The film probably drew more inspiration from the song "Valley Girl," which was a hit the year before by Frank Zappa and his daughter Moon Unit, fer sure fer sure.

When a valley girl wants a great Cabernet Sauvignon, she turns to the north and grabs a bottle from Napa Valley. Castello di Amorosa has a great assortment, led by Il Barone at $110 a pop.

As if 1970 wasn't weird enough, we have Beyond the Valley of the Dolls to make it even weirder. Reviled by critics upon its release, Beyond was eaten up by younger movie goers at the time. It has even won over some of its critics, who now see its satire in a better light. 

Directed by Russ Meyer and co-written by him and Roger Ebert, this movie zips along like a pinball, bashing its ripped-from-real-life characters up against a script that was revised on the spur of every other moment. It's got music, dime store psychedelia, shameless melodrama, drugs, and a jaundiced world view. Meyer felt that's what the kids were looking for on the big screen, and he dished it up super-sized. 

Valley of the Moon Winery makes a Sonoma County Chardonnay that sells for about $20. Buttery but balanced. Don't make a habit of washing down your pills with it. 

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Pouring Portugal, Fresh And Bright

Wine is a global affair. The wines of Portugal are particularly interesting, since winemaking was once bound by politics there. 

Constantino Ramos started a wine project a decade ago with grapes sourced from a high-altitude plot of land that belonged to his family. Now he sources fruit from additional plots, all at high elevation. He considers that to be essential for making fresh, acid-driven wines. 

My wine club guy has some facts about Vinho Verde, located a few miles inland from the coast. Although it is a very warm region, the vineyards are planted at over 1200 feet and experience swings between daytime and nighttime temperatures of up to 40 degrees. The diurnal swing allows the grapes to ripen during the day while retaining acidity as they cool at night. 

"Like all traditional Portuguese wines, this is a field blend, in this case from 100-year-old vines of varieties that are traditional to the stretch of territory that crosses over to Spanish Galicia to the east. The blend includes borraçal, alvarelhão, espadeiro, and vinhão, the latter a peculiar, dark-pigmented variety with stunning, dusty minerality reminiscent of Slovenian teran." 

For Juca, "Ramos destems the grapes to avoid excessive tannin extraction, and then ages it for nearly a year in a combination of stainless steel and old barrels." The region's soil is mostly of granite, but this wine was grown in vineyards that are purely so. 

This wine colors up medium ruby in the glass. The nose offers brilliant, ripe cherry aromas and very little oak effect. The palate is also fruit-forward, mainly cherry, and it is fresh and clean tasting. It is quite an enjoyable wine.

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Blood Of The Vines - Shaken Not Stirred

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 have three James Bond films on the docket along with a wine pairing for each. And, no, Mr. Bond. We expect you to drink. 

The third film in the Bond series, Goldfinger hit movie screens in 1964. To match 007's expensive tastes, the movie raked in more than 100 million dollars, the first Bond film to do so. It was also the first Bond film to feature a hit single over the opening credits. Shirley Bassey's performance was a global hit. In smaller letters, it was also the first Bond film to have a theme song with vocals, a fact which Ms. Bassey surely appreciated. The title song made her career.

The sight of a beautiful woman covered in gold paint leads me to think of Buddy Ebsen. His body reacted badly to the aluminum dust used in his makeup for the role of the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz. That’s why he was replaced. Happily, Hollywood figured out how to make a safer base for full-body makeup, allowing Shirley Eaton to wear the gold paint in Goldfinger. 

The plot centers on a scheme to use a dirty bomb at Fort Knox to make off with the gold bullion. "Over my shaken martini," says Mr. Bond. 

In Goldfinger, Bond drank a Dom Perignon '53, along with mint juleps, fancy brandy, and his signature martini. One of my favorite moments in the TV series, The West Wing, is when the topic of James Bond arises and the president complains that Bond likes his martini "shaken, not stirred." POTUS points out that the act of shaking the cocktail chips the ice and creates a drink that is watered down, lamenting that Bond is "ordering a weak martini and being snooty about it."

But back to the Dom. If the thousands of dollars for a 1953 is out of your price range, try a 2017. It'll run you a couple of C-notes at least, but it is Dom Perignon. And the bottle is heavy enough to act as a shield in case Oddjob shows up. 

1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service was the sixth installment in the James Bond series, and the first without Sean Connery in the role of 007. George Lazenby vaulted instantly from starring in TV advertisements for chocolates to being "Bond. James Bond." Life is good that way to some folks.  

Life was good to Diana Rigg, at least the professional side of it. She played the Bond girl here. The character was an Italian countess who became, in the film, Bond's wife - however briefly. Rigg had reportedly said that she always wanted to appear in an "epic film," and OHMSS was that. Rigg may have had a somewhat charmed acting life, but she suffered some great personal heartbreak along the way.

I am of the age that Diana Rigg as Emma Peel had a great "M. Appeal" for me as a pre-teen boy. We won't get into embarrassing specifics here, except to say that I was left with a lifelong search for a woman who could do a little judo hip-flip on me while entering a room.

Rigg reportedly had it in her contract for the BBC series Victoria that she would be served a cold bottle of prosecco as each day's shooting wrapped. You can go that way if you like - a $10 bottle of Italian bubbles - or you can lean into the Bond lifestyle and order an expensive Champagne. While you're leaning, extract a few Benjamins from your wallet.  Bond was no slouch when it came to booze. He liked Tattinger early in the film series. 

Dr. No, directed by Terence Young in 1962, was the first film in the James Bond series, Sean Connery played Bond opposite Ursula Andress.  Nice work if you can get it.  

Remember how you couldn't get away from spy shows in the '60s?  Dr. No is why. After the film's success, the spies all came in from the cold. The character Andress plays, by the way, is a shell diver. That's right, she sells sea shells by the seashore.

The movie is set in Jamaica, so how about pairing it with Jamaican wine?  Magnum Tonic Wine is actually mead, and is drunk by the locals "for medicinal purposes" and is also considered a sexual stimulant. That's all well and good, but you might find it easier to locate a Red Stripe beer, or a bottle of rum for your pairing pleasure. Or a big, fat spliff, mon.

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