Friday, September 30, 2022

Blood Of The Vines - Asian Explosion

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 films which bring a container ship of action from the Far East, and a wine pairing for each of them.

Shogun Assassin is a 1980 mashup of a pair of popular samurai flicks. Like the rest of that year's pop culture, things go from great to lousy in a heartbeat. For every M*A*S*H there's a Dukes of Hazzard. For every Squeeze, there's an Air Supply. For every "Call Me" there’s a "Keep On Loving You." Caught on the fence? There's "Whip It."

"Meet the greatest team in the history of mass slaughter," screams the movie poster for Shogun Assassin. The picture shows a samurai warrior wielding blood-soaked swords, with a little kid in tow. For every "Awww" there's an "ewww." "Sword and sorcery … with a vengeance," the sales blurb goes on. But, ultimately, words fail to capture the magic of a blood stained killer holding a baby. 

Koi Pond Cellars has a red and a white in their Samurai line - a Merlot and a Chardonnay from central Washington. I have no idea why the Parkers dedicated a line of their wines to samurai, but they also have a set of Geisha blends.

1975 - the year that tried to tell us how crappy the '80s were going to be - gave us Inframan. This Hong Kong superhero show pits the Super Inframan against Demon Princess Elzebub. The actual translations of those names are more like "Chinese Superman" and "Princess Dragon Mom," but I think the producers were wise to change them. The DC universe alone is loaded with lawyers, and who knows who takes care of dragon mom copyright infringement?

This bionic-man-meets-kung-fu tale is spun from the same cloth that made Ultraman, so you see a lot of pose-striking. That's how the Thunderball Fists come flying out, silly! Speaking of which, did the James Bond franchise sign off on naming those fists after one of their movies?

Dragonette Cellars makes incredible Sauvignon Blanc wines in Buellton, with a Los Olivos tasting room. Dragon moms and dragon dads alike should find them to be enjoyable pairings with Inframan.  

From 1989 came Tetsuo the Iron Man, a Japanese body horror film that looks like low-budget Cronenberg. When Tetsuo's characters may feel the effects of iron-poor blood, they don't take Geritol - they eat a toaster or stick a piece of rebar in their leg. What happens with a power drill is the stuff from which snuff was made.

Descriptions cannot do this film justice, much like Eraserhead a dozen years before. You may not understand it, but you'll sure as hell never forget it.

That opens the door for a pairing with a South African Pinotage wine. The grape got a bad rap back in the day when people said Pinotage tasted like a rusty nail. Not the cocktail, an actual rusty nail. Improvements were made, and nowadays Pinotage has more wine-like descriptors attached to it, like tar, bacon fat, pipe tobacco and herbal tea. Beeslaar Wines makes a high-end, single-vineyard bottling. 


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Wednesday, September 28, 2022

Kosher Wine With A Fruity Twist

The Buzz line is produced by the Israeli winery Carmel, which was founded in 1882 by none other than Château Lafite's Baron Edmond de Rothschild. Buzz wines are flavored Moscatos, easy-to-drink sweeties which are targeted to GenZ drinkers. They come in peach, mango and pineapple and have a nice fizz to them. 

The Carmel Buzz Mango Moscato Sweet Bubbly Wine 2021 has low alcohol - just 5.5% abv - and a retail sticker of $11. The grapes were grown in the Judean Hills region of Israel and the wine is kosher for Passover.

The wine pours up with a golden tint, a nice bit of foamy bubbles and a nose that practically rides a rocket out of the glass. Despite the advertised mango, it's peach I smell most. Hints of nectarine and pear are also on hand. On the palate, again, it's peach that comes through strongest, but there is some mango in there. It's sweet, whatever it is. The mouthfeel has some viscosity to it and the finish is medium long. Aside from not being too terribly complex, this wine offers nothing to complain about. 


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Monday, September 26, 2022

A California Pinot Grigio You'll Probably Like

Bread & Butter's 2021 Pinot Grigio is described as a "California Pinot Grigio," but the Napa location is more prominently displayed on the Bread & Butter label. Is this a ploy to make the buyer think they’re getting a Napa Valley wine? Is this a mostly Napa Valley wine? As the company's website says, "Don’t overthink it." Bread & Butter winemaker Linda Trotta says if you like it, it's a good wine. A lot of people are going to like this one. No matter where the grapes were sourced. Alcohol hits 12.5% abv and it retails for about $15.

The wine shows pale yellow in the glass and smells of stone fruit and flowers, with a slight nuttiness to the nose. The palate has a nice bit of minerality and salinity to go along with the peach and apricot flavors. The acidity is a little tame, so sip it or pair it with a salad. 


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Friday, September 23, 2022

Blood Of The Vines - Black Lives Matter

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 films which center on race relations in America, with wine pairings for each, from African-American winemakers.

Racial tensions and the violence that often results from them are the focus of Spike Lee's 1989 classic, Do the Right Thing. The scenes in this movie have been played over and over in real life through the decades - the mistrust, the fear, the anger, the chokehold, the senseless death, the trashing of a business, the remorse. It makes one wonder if, indeed, we can't all just get along.

Many critics of the day hailed Right Thing as one of the best movies ever made, while just as many shrugged it off as a play on white guilt. The latter crowd no doubt asked themselves, "Does he have to play that boombox so loudly?" The film ends on the differing views of Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, with no real indication of which man had the better idea.

Our wine pairing has to be the right thing. Stuyvesant Champagnes sounds like it hits the mark. Vintner Marvina Robinson named it after her hometown, Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, where the movie is set. It is real Champagne, however, made from grapes grown mainly in the Marne Valley. Robinson says she is one of only a few African-American women to own a Champagne brand.

1968 was a big year for racial tensions. Baltimore, Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. were ripped apart by racial rage following King's assassination. The Story of a Three-Day Pass was written and directed by Melvin Van Peebles, and given a major release after the violence that erupted the following April.

Pass is the story of a black American serviceman in France who is given a three-day pass after his promotion. During his weekend in Paris, he has a whirlwind fling with a white woman. When they get wind of this back at the base, he is busted. His crime: interracial romance. Don't ask don't tell, indeed. Someone told on him.

La Fête du Rosé comes from the Côtes de Provence region. Founder Donae Burston says he discovered rosé while in St. Tropez for his 30th birthday. He admits that he thought everyone was drinking white Zinfandel. One taste set him straight. Now he gives a portion of his proceeds to organizations which help people of color find their way in the wine world.

1961's A Raisin in the Sun has a superb cast, headed up by Sidney Poitier and Ruby Dee. In the movie, we see a black family's struggle to get ahead in Chicago amid personal tragedy, money troubles and race discrimination.  Unlike TV's The Jeffersons, they never make it to a "deluxe apartment in the sky."  They do, however, manage to maintain the family's dignity while "movin' on up" to a modest home.

Poitier's performance fills the screen, while everyone else in the credits got rave reviews, too. The film was honored at Cannes with the Gary Cooper Award. It was directed by Daniel Petrie - a white Canadian - while the play's original director on Broadway was Lloyd Richards - a black Canadian. I really would love to have seen what Richards would have done with this on the screen. 

Simply Love Wines is based in Chicago, but owner/vintner Barbara Jackson uses Napa grapes to produce a white, a pink and two reds.

Wine Enthusiast magazine has a more complete listing of black-owned wine labels.


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Wednesday, September 21, 2022

Chenin Blanc Wine For Cooking And Drinking

The Vignobles Lacheteau Vouvray 2021 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.

This Vouvray - I bought it for cooking, but drank what was left - is a great match for something spicy, like Thai or Indian food. Alcohol is restrained, at 11.5% abv and the wine ran me just under ten bucks at my local Trader Joe's grocery.

The very pale straw-tinted wine has a floral bouquet which carries with it a tangerine scent that also appears in the flavor profile. A flinty note balances the fruit with some minerality. Acidity is nice, but not too racy, perfect for pairing with those spicy cuisines. 


Monday, September 19, 2022

Russian River Bubbles, In Pink

The folks at Sonoma-Cutrer are celebrating 40 years of passion, imagination and pride in 2022.  They say their approach to winemaking "marries Burgundian traditions and California ingenuity." Their trophy case is brimming with awards their wines have won through the decades.

The winery says that the 2019 vintage featured rain, rain and more rain, plus a summer free of radical temperature extremes.  The harvest started a week later than usual and proceeded methodically - just the way a winemaker wants it. 

The grapes are 70% Owsley Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay from the Vine Hill vineyard, both prime locations in the Russian River Valley. This pink sparkler was crafted by Sonoma-Cutrer's Pinot Noir Winemaker, Zidanelia Arcidiacono. The wine rested on the spent yeast cells for two and a half years before disgorging. Alcohol sits at 12% abv and it retails for $55.

This pink rosé has a light onionskin hue and a decent froth of bubbles which form on the pour. The nose has strawberry and cherry aromas mixed in with a toasty scent. The palate is busy with red fruit and minerality, while the acidity is razor sharp. It is the sort of sparkling wine which is thought to be a "special occasion" wine, but don't wait. Opening this bottle is the special occasion. 


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Friday, September 16, 2022

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 examine three films which center on getting even, with wine pairings for each.

Mandy is a 2018 action/horror film. It is a bloody, trippy, stylish movie which shows revenge served as cold as it gets. When you see Nicholas Cage take off on a revenge mission armed with an axe and a crossbow - the latter weapon has a name, by the way - you realize you expect Cage to be armed with an axe and a crossbow - one with a name, hell yeah.

Be prepared to see more blood than a heart surgeon sees as this tale of an unhinged man avenging his wife's murder spins off into the ozone. There is no denying that the bad guys have it coming to them - they are the sort of bad guys who scare away other bad guys. And, if you've ever wondered how you would handle this kind of revenge situation - I'll bet you'd want to handle it just like Cage's character does. As bloody as it can possibly be.

For Nicholas Cage, let's pair a wine from J. Cage Cellars of Sonoma County - no relation. Cage is Francis Ford Coppola's nephew, but changed his name to avoid looking like the beneficiary of nepotism. J. Cage has a handful of lovely Pinot Noirs available for around $50. Don't serve them cold - but a slight chill is perfectly alright.

It was 1958 when Hammer Films released Revenge of Frankenstein to an unsuspecting world. Well, maybe not so unsuspecting, since it was the second of six Frankenfilms put out by Hammer. 

Revenge works more like a graveyard farce than a horror film. People keep evading trouble by showing a dead body, of which there seem to be plenty around for the showing. Little games of "who's in the casket" serve to mix up the horror into a frothy lather laced with gallows humor.

Since Revenge stars Peter Cushing, let's make a cocktail named for him. The Peter Cushing blends a jigger of dry gin and a half jigger of ginger wine. Stone's makes one that's affordable. Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Personally, I never make a cocktail with a half jigger of anything, so adjust accordingly. Hell, the movie is an hour and a half long - make a pitcher. By the way, it is said to be smooth and complex, like Mr. Cushing himself.

The Abominable Dr. Phibes, from 1971, is a legitimate black comedy starring the great Vincent Price and the also great Joseph Cotten. Price plays a man who lost his wife in surgery a few years earlier, and he blames - you guessed it - her surgeons. To sum it up in a few words: they… will… pay.

His revenge is loosely based on the Ten Plagues of Egypt, which are more plagues than he needs, but not as many as he wants. Spoiler alert: the self embalming scene is probably one of the grislier concepts ever put to celluloid. But, in a fun way.

Price was a wine aficionado - he even had a wine tasting scene in The Black Cat segment of Tales of Terror - so this wine pairing must be perfect. You can listen to Price's opinion on the elegance of serving wine with dinner, although he is a California wine tout in this EP, which dates back to before Cali was on the world's wine map.

He likes Port, so let's go with a California Port-style wine as a pairing for Phibes. True Port, of course, only comes from Portugal, but I'll not raise the hackles of the revenge-minded Dr. Phibes. Bogle makes a lovely dessert wine of Petite Sirah grapes. Blood red, by the way.


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Wednesday, September 14, 2022

Great Bubbles From Mendocino County

Scharffenberger explains that they have been "pioneering super premium Mendocino California sparkling wine since 1981, with grapes sourced from Scharffenberger's own 120 acres of vineyards, as well as select vineyards belonging to trusted growers in Mendocino County." The estate is located in the Anderson Valley, where it was founded four decades ago.

The grapes in question are 55% Chardonnay and 45% Pinot Noir. The wine spent two years aging on the spent yeast cells, then another six months in the bottle. The alcohol sits at 12.5% abv and the wine sells for around $29.

This wine pours up with a nice, white froth on top of the salmon pink juice. The nose comes forth with a healthy whiff of cherries. On the palate, the red berries come up alongside the nice yeasty bread flavor. It's a fizzy drink with a great acidity and a lovely finish. 


Monday, September 12, 2022

Mosketto By Bronco

There is a big market these days for sweet wines.  Sweet in the sense that they are not dry, but not exactly dessert style.  Mosketto Frizzante Bianco - from Bronco Wines - should appeal to those looking for a low-alcohol beverage in the White Claw vein.  I was not bowled over by its complexity, but for sweet, fizzy fun, it fits perfectly.  The Moscato grapes came from Italy's Piedmont region and the wine hits only 5% abv for alcohol content - really partially fermented grape juice - while selling for $12.  Don't pair it with dessert, by the way - it goes better with salty snacks.

This one is all Moscato.  The wine is actually a partially fermented grape juice.  Sweet on the nose, sweet on the palate - with a bit of fizz thrown in to make it feel more like a party.  This is a wine for gulping by the pool, not a wine for ruminating upon.  


Friday, September 9, 2022

Blood Of The Vines - Sidney Furie, Director

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 examine three films directed by Sidney Furie, with wine pairings for each.

Sidney Furie is a Canadian-born film director who helped forge a movie industry in his home country, sort of like Canadian-born Paul Shaffer forged a musical sidekick industry. TFH Guru Daniel Kremer wrote a book about his life and, in the process, unearthed one of his early films which was thought to be lost. Good work, DK!

Furie couldn't get much of a career going in Canada - what with no film biz to speak of at the time - but the Brits were onto him in the late 1950s as a young man who had a way with celluloid stories. He moved to England and directed horror, comedy and musical flicks before striking gold in the mid-1960s with The Ipcress Files, his dark take on the spy genre.

Furie's previous movie, The Leather Boys, was arguably even darker. About a gay biker in London's rocker scene, the film was pretty steamy for its time and has been hailed as a watershed moment in queer cinema. Everybody seems to be sleeping with everybody else, and no one is really all that happy about it. Ah, life in the south London suburbs - all the grit, at no extra charge.

I was tempted to pair a wine from the southern Rhône Valley with this film, due to the hint of leather one would expect on the nose. Then I found this Paso Robles Zinfandel from Four Vines, The Biker. The label shows a young lady biker who has limited the leather to her head and feet, opting for lace elsewhere. 

1970's The Lawyer has Furie directing Barry Newman as Superlawyer Tony Petrocelli, who would later carry the role to TV. The ripped-from-real-life story is loosely based on the Sam Sheppard murder trial, in which a doctor is sent up the river for killing his wife, then beats the rap in a second trial a decade later.

What makes a superlawyer in the days before superlawyer.com? Well, driving really fast has a lot to do with it. You have to drive fast when you spend so much time chasing ambulances. Also, you have to really care about the drunks and other losers you are keeping out of jail while waiting for the big case to fall into your lap.

The wine industry has lawyers that specialize in their needs, just like every other profession. Dickenson, Peatman and Fogarty, for instance, in northern California, can see a winery through struggles with governmental bureaucracy or vineyard title disputes - the less appealing side of the wine business. I wonder, do they offer a cut rate to namesakes of their company masthead? Ask the tasting room attendant the next time you travel to Thomas Fogarty Winery in the Santa Cruz Mountains. They may not be able to comment on current litigation, but they have a Pinot Noir that's perfect to pour while viewing The Lawyer

The 1975 black comedy Sheila Levine is Dead and Living in New York is reminiscent of, but not related to, "Tina Delgado is alive, alive!"

Delgado was a figment of boss radio's imagination. Levine was a shy girl from Pennsylvania who hit the big city with a suitcase full of naïveté. A one night stand upsets her, and she packs it in and returns home to live with her parents. That's not working out either, so it's back to the Big Apple for a little more heartbreak. Critics had to type their reviews with one hand, because they were holding their noses with the other. Eh, ya can't win 'em all.

If you're looking to pair a wine with a movie about a young woman's innocence lost, how about a nice Pinot Blanc from Oregon's St. Innocent Winery? The winemaker says he named the place after his father, who was not a saint but did carry the baggage of the middle name of Innocent. Still, he probably got less of an ass-kicking in third grade than the Boy Named Sue.


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Wednesday, September 7, 2022

Deep Pink From Rioja

Cune is easier to say than CVNE, which is the real acronym of the wine company spelled out as Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España. This Rioja wine outfit has been owned and operated by the same family since 1879. That's when the Real de Asúa brothers got the wine ball rolling. Today, the family has seven wineries in four of Spain's main wine-growing regions - Rioja, Penedés, Ribera del Duero, and Valdeorras.

The 2020 Cune Rosado is all Rioja Tempranillo. The grapes were picked in Rioja Alta, vinified in stainless steel vats and bottled for release. The vintage held plenty of rain and even some hail, but mild temperatures resulted in an earlier-than-usual harvest. Alcohol rests at 14.5% abv and the bottle cost $13 at my local Whole Foods Market.

This Spanish pinkie has a beautiful red color, almost brick red, and a nose which carries red fruit along on an earthy bouquet. That earth is also notable on the palate, where it once again travels in tandem with cherries and strawberries. 


Monday, September 5, 2022

Sangria In A Bottle

People sometimes don't give wine importers enough credit for what they do. The best importers are those with a nose for wine, who can sniff out good stuff through endless trials, then bring the product to us. Great importers like Kermit Lynch and Terry Theise are as important and as recognizable as great producers.  

Mack and Schühle are Miami-based importers who find great wine and pass it along at a fair price. Founded in 1939, the company expanded to the Miami office about a decade ago. They produce wine in Italy and Spain and distribute other wines globally.

Art of Earth is a global vintner which makes wine from organic vineyards the world over. Their line includes bottling from Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Argentina. 

The Art of Earth Bubbly Sangria is more like a frizzante sangria, but who's counting bubbles? The nose of red wine and citrus certainly smells like real sangria, and it tastes like it, too. The Tempranillo and Garnacha grapes from Spain's Castillo-La Mancha region are blended with organic juices to create this summer sipper. Alcohol is super-low, at 7% abv, and it retails for $12.

This fizzy sangria is loads of fun. Tangy and sweet, with lovely citrus notes on the nose, this wine has beautiful red fruit flavors along with the citrus and a lip-smacking acidity. Chill a bottle or two for your next cookout. 


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Friday, September 2, 2022

Blood Of The Vines - Friedkin Freakout!

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 pour up some wine pairings for a few films directed by William Friedkin

The Night They Raided Minsky's, from 1968, is listed as Friedkin's fictional description of the 1925 invention of the striptease. Well, burly-kew may not have seen the footlights until that time frame, but I'll bet that the striptease was actually invented shortly after they came up with clothing.

The burlesque shows staged by the Minsky brothers were roundly criticized by decent folk, while famous poets, pundits and publishers whiled away the hours of Prohibition with live nude girls - well, nearly nude - up on the stage. The Minskys were routinely raided by the cops, and the whole burlesque business was shut down in the mid-1930s amid public outcry whipped up by New York City's Mayor LaGuardia. See, if he had been a nicer guy, he might have gotten a better airport named after him.

The critical reception to Minsky's was pretty good and the film made money, although even those who liked it thought the plot was as flimsy as the dancers' costumes. Friedkin reportedly felt he was in over his head during the production and asked to be fired. "Naaah, yer takin' the blame fer this one."

Australia's Burlesque Wines come complete with a pair of legs on the label, outfitted with fishnet and heels. Their website has been pretty quiet for a few years, so I hope they haven't been raided.

1977's Sorcerer can be considered a forgotten classic. Why forgotten? The film came out in the same year as Star Wars; talk about a tough beat. Some say it's a remake of 1953's The Wages of Fear, although that "some" does not include Mr. Friedkin. He should know - he made the movie.

If it really is a forgotten classic, let me refresh your memory. Four desperate men are assigned to haul some nitroglycerin somewhere in South America. Do they have any special training for this? Of course not - if they did, it's a documentary.  If you are watching and wondering, "Hey, where da Sorcerer at?" have no fear. It's the name of one of the nitro-hauling trucks.

I was sitting in the Frolic Room one afternoon when there was a bomb scare down the street. Some drunk wandered in and claimed the LAPD, knowing somehow of his extensive background in explosives, had asked him to defuse the thing. The regulars rolled their eyes at the thought of a cop saying, "Hey you - looks like you've had a few drinks - wanna come over here and cut this wire?" He claimed he didn't have the time to help them out - it was beer thirty and he was late for his bottle. Anyway, desperate, untrained men handling explosives rarely end up in the positive.

I simply didn't have the heart to pair a Bulgarian wine called Explosion with Sorcerer. I took a similar hard pass on any wine-related item which featured Mickey Mouse in a sorcerer's hat, and I urge you to do the same. Família Geisse makes some of the top sparkling wines in that America from the southern hemisphere - in big, bad Brazil, in fact. If you're feeling reckless, shake up a bottle and let it rip.

The French Connection made 1971 an enjoyable year for a lot of people, even if they did pick their feet in Poughkeepsie. Friedkin won an Academy Award for his direction, as did Gene Hackman for his acting. His Oscar should have been wearing a pork pie hat.

The actors who turned down the role of Popeye Doyle reads like a page from the book, 1960s Hollywood Tough Guys, if there were such a tome. It's as if Hackman nodded off in the casting office while waiting, and when he awoke everyone else was gone.

If you want to talk about chase scenes - and who doesn't? - the one in The French Connection has to be at the top of the list, right up there with those from Bullitt, Baby Driver and The Blues Brothers. Friedkin even tried to top his Connection chase nearly a decade later in To Live and Die in L.A. He came close, but the cigar still goes to Poughkeepsie. 

French Connection Wines offers juice made by a real live French winemaker, but in the wine-drenched Texas Hill Country. There could be a movie in that setup, or at least an eight-episode streaming series. Their High Plains Petite Sirah sounds like it could also pair with a Clint Eastwood movie.


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Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Forever Blowing Bubbles

People sometimes don't give wine importers enough credit for what they do. The best importers are those with a nose for wine, who can sniff out good stuff through endless trials, then bring the product to us. Great importers like Kermit Lynch and Terry Theise are as important and as recognizable as great producers.  

Mack and Schühle are Miami-based importers who find great wine and pass it along at a fair price. Founded in 1939, the company expanded to the Miami office about a decade ago. They produce wine in Italy and Spain and distribute other wines globally.

Art of Earth is a global vintner which makes wine from organic vineyards the world over. Their line includes bottling from Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Argentina. 

The Art of Earth Organic Prosecco Frizzante hails from Veneto, in Italy's DOC Prosecco region. The grapes used here are 85% Glera and 15% other varieties. It is a gluten-free wine, non-GMO and organic. Alcohol sits low at 11% abv and the retail price is around $15.

This fizzy wine has festive bubbles which should be enjoyed before they dissipate. The nose shows apples, pears and a hint of citrus minerality. The palate brings a zippy acidity along with the salinity-laden fruit flavors. The feel is more savory than fruity, and that lasts into the medium finish. 


Monday, August 29, 2022

A Breezy Sicilian White Wine

Donnafugata is a Sicilian winery run by a family who has been making wine there for 170 years. Their name comes from a novel called The Leopard, in which a queen, a fleeing woman - donna in fuga - finds refuge in the area of Sicily where the vineyards are located today.

The main grape in the Anthilia white blend is Lucido, or Catarratto Bianco Lucido as it is officially known. The winery decided to simplify the name in an effort to make it more likable.  Lucido is the second most widely planted grape on the island of Sicily, right behind Trebbiano. Donnafugata has been making this wine since the 1983 vintage. 

Grapes were taken from the Contessa Entellina estate, in the southwestern part of Sicily. The wine was vinified in stainless steel and aged in tanks for two months, with another two months in the bottle. Alcohol tips in at 12.5% abv and it retails for about $20.

The wine colors up as a light straw yellow in the glass. Its nose is quite fragrant, with explosive notes of peach and pear, white flowers and a nice touch of salinity. The palate is savory, with a strong streak of minerals draping the stone fruit flavors. The acidity is very brisk, which will make a nice pairing with seafood dishes, a Nicoise salad or creamy pasta. 


Friday, August 26, 2022

Blood Of The Vines - On The Altar Of Altman

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 pour up some wine pairings for a few films directed by the late, great Robert Altman. He was a groundbreaker, a trailblazer, an innovator - and hopefully our pairings will be at least half as inspired as his movies.

California Split, from 1974, has been called the greatest movie ever about gambling, and that may be, despite some lofty competition like Ocean's 11, Molly's Game and Atlantic City. Las Vegas and the Jersey shore I get, but isn't everyday life a gamble in Los Angeles - even when you're not at a card house or a Native American casino?

Split is set in Reno, where many people go to gamble after they've seen Lake Tahoe. The movie captures the grimy essence of the gambling world and Altman's famous overlapping dialogue perfectly recreates the feel of walking a casino floor. Except, after the movie you still have most of your money.

If you're a fan of the card tables, you might try a wine from JAQK Cellars - the letters stand for jack, ace, queen and king. If you don't find those cards, you may not be playing with a full deck. Their main wine seems to be the High Roller Cabernet Sauvignon. Suuure it is. 

1971's McCabe and Mrs. Miller was the followup picture to M*A*S*H. For a smooth transition from California Split, we can make note that McCabe is a gambler who rolls into town and starts a whorehouse, and the original title of the film was The Presbyterian Church Wager. That notion was dropped after the Presbyterian church took offense.

Critics refer to McCabe as a "revisionist western" and Altman himself called it an "anti western." It’s set in a Washington mining town in the early part of the 20th century, which tends to give a nod towards a more modern time than the horse'n'buckboard era. 

The gambler hooks up with a lady hustler, and together they find that there is a fortune to be made in selling sex. However, when a fortune is made, someone always wants a slice of the pie. 

Here's a Nevada dessert wine made right down the street from a brothel. Too on-the-nose for you? I didn't think so. Check with Pahrump Valley Winery for this Port-style sipper.

Short Cuts hit the big screen in 1993 and won praise from many critics, while disappointing others. The bad reviews called it shallow and sexist, while the fans listed it as one of the best of the year. The movie raked in a number of awards, and it might have bagged more if '93 hadn't also been the year of Schindler's List. 

The script assembles a collection of Raymond Carver stories into a glimpse of life in Los Angeles during a time when the Mediterranean fruit fly was the worry that distracted us from the fear of earthquakes. Shallow? Us? Stop whining and help me get ready for my next audition.

For a movie which is basically an ode to L.A., how about a wine from the heart of L.A.? San Antonio Winery is the largest and oldest wine producer in the City of Angels, although the grapes are grown elsewhere these days.


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Wednesday, August 24, 2022

Make It Mateus

Mateus Dry Rosé is Portugal's leading wine export. Its makers claim that a Mateus wine is sold every 38 minutes around the world. Many people of a certain age fondly remember Mateus Rosé as one of their first wines. You may remember the squatty green bottle if you're old enough, but it is now sold in a clear glass, flask-shaped bottle. 

Mateus is made from Baga and Shiraz grapes. Shiraz is a grape most wine drinkers are probably familiar with, but Baga could be a new one for many. It comes mainly from the Bairrada D.O.C., where it is the main variety grown. Alcohol for Mateus tips only 12% abv and the wine generally sells for ten bucks or less. 

Mateus Dry Rosé colors up as a medium-pale orange, or salmon color. Red fruit dominates the nose - strawberry mainly - with plenty more of it on the palate. The acidity is brisk, and the fruit flavors are up front. It's not a complicated wine, but it is fairly tasty and may be your best bet for adding the Baga grape to your "have tried" list. 


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Monday, August 22, 2022

Canadian Sweetness

Inniskillin bills itself as Canada's original estate winery, founded back in the 1980s. The winery stakes out the breadth of Canada, with locations in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario and the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia.

The wine we have here is their 2017 Icewine, made from Vidal grapes. Icewine, if you are not familiar with it, is made from grapes which are harvested so late in the season that they are frozen. Nicholas Gizuk is the Winemaker at the Niagara location, and he produces several icewines, Vidal (oaked and unoaked), Riesling, Cabernet Franc and sparkling styles. Alcohol in the Vidal sits at 9.5% abv, while a 375 ml bottle sells for about $50.

This dessert wine has a lovely, rich golden tint. The nose offers candied apricot and honey, while the palate shows that yummy stone fruit and a touch of citrus, along with plenty of acidity.


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Friday, August 19, 2022

Blood Of The Vines - Auteur 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 select a few wines to put alongside films of auteur directors, filmmakers whose visions for the scripts were so strong that we credit them almost entirely for what appears on the screen.

A number of auteurs have become household names for fine artistes. Alfred Hitchcock, Orson Welles, Ingmar Bergman, Federico Fellini and Akira Kurosawa are among those cited whenever the topic of auteurs comes up. Any of them is worth a wine pairing, in my humble opinion.

Army of Shadows is a 1969 film about the French Resistance in World War II. Written and directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, the script was adapted from a book by a real Resistance fighter, Joseph Kessel. The movie was not received well by French critics, who thought Melville kissed up to Charles de Gaulle a bit too much for their liking. It wasn't released in the U.S. until 37 years later, when it was hailed as a masterpiece.

The film does not sugarcoat the Resistance, presenting instead a stark and haunting view of the danger those men and women faced as they fought to free their country from the Nazis. It's a testimony to them that the word resistance came into popular usage during the Trump administration.

During WWII, many French winemakers acted bravely to hide Jews in their wine cellars and prevent the country's premier wines from being looted by the Germans. Bernard de Nonancourt, the head of the Laurent-Perrier Champagne house, was a member of the Resistance. Let's blow the cork on any of their fine Champagnes to pair with Army of Shadows. You can find some of them for as little as $40.

1972's Aguirre, the Wrath of God was written and directed by Werner Herzog. The movie fictionalizes the search for the gold of El Dorado. It was shot in what must have been a hellish five weeks on the Amazon River. 

Klaus Kinski, who stars as the Spanish conquistador Aguirre, reportedly ranted and raved like a madman at Herzog over their differences in how Aguirre should be played. Kinski wanted the ranting and raving madman approach, while Herzog opted for something a little more low key. Herzog got his way, and some say Kinski acted at gunpoint, although Herzog denied the story. If it's even remotely true, that would be one ballsy auteur. Herzog and Kinski worked together again on four more films, so there must have been an attraction that rose above the threat of violence.

It would be easy to select a wine from the El Dorado AVA in California's Sierra Foothills for Aguirre and be done with it. I even found wines called Conquistador from Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Chile. However, a Spanish conquistador deserves a Spanish wine, one that may have been on board the Niña, Pinta and Santa Maria. Lustau's Don Nuño Oloroso sherry is dry, dark brown and rich, and available for around $25.

From 1974, Celine and Julie Go Boating is a French fantasy from director Jacques Rivette. There is a bit of Alice in Wonderland in it, along with other literary inspirations, and it has a title that probably loses something in the translation. For most of the movie, you’re wondering, "Where's the damn boat?" A lot of people like it, though, and it is quite highly regarded by critics, too. 

There is a fanciful friendship which becomes fueled by eating mysterious candies and taking trips to a house in another time. The young ladies attempt to unravel a mystery at the house and find that time follows them back home and lets them become auteurs themselves, rewriting the mystery. It is a trippy film, and fully deserving of a trippy wine pairing.

Shroom Wines claims to sell non-alcoholic wine made from the grapes you know and love with a bit of magic mushroom mixed in with them. I don't know if the laws governing psilocybin have been relaxed - or tossed aside - but the last time I had magic mushrooms, there was definitely an air of illegality about the whole affair. Well, trippy is trippy, and if you’ve got some Shroom wine on hand, or just some shrooms, schlagers!

 

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Wednesday, August 17, 2022

What Bubbles The Future Holds

This California sparkling wine is named after a card from the tarot deck, the one symbolizing harmony, joy and contentment - perfect for a nice bottle of bubbly. Banshee Wines makes an assortment of wines in Healdsburg, where they can be nearer to the Sonoma County vineyards where they source the fruit.

This non-vintage brut was made in the Méthode Champenoise, with secondary fermentation happening in the bottle. It was aged on the yeast for two years or more.  The grapes involved are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier, with alcohol sitting at 12.5% abv and a retail price of $30. 

This wine presents a thick, white froth upon pouring - and the fine bubbles stick around awhile. On the nose, green apples, pears and white flowers abound, with a healthy dose of minerals along for the sniffing. The palate also shows off a ton of the aforementioned fruit and some citrus minerality as well. The wonderful acidity will make this a sparkler that can do more than host a toast. You may want oysters or lobster with it.