"If anyone orders Merlot,
I'm leaving. I am not drinking
any f-----g Merlot."
This was by far the most memorable
line in the whole movie for
me, stated by wine snob Miles.
The movie 'Sideways' was a
box-office hit, as well as
garnering many prestigious
accolades and awards; among
them the Academy Award for
Best Adapted Screenplay and
two Golden Globes - Best Comedy
and Best Screenplay. Now available
on DVD, this movie was released
in October 2004. Check out
this site for all the details
on this film: http://www2.foxsearchlight.com/sideways/.
The movie is about two buddies
who decide to spend the last
week of 'freedom' - before
one of them gets married -
touring the Santa Barbara wine
region. The movie takes you
on a journey with Miles, a
wise-cracking, alcoholic, depressive,
pessimist who has a love of
wine, particularly Pinot Noir
and his wedding-jittered, nymphomaniac-amigo,
Jack. It also cast the elusive,
finicky grape Pinot Noir in
a starring role. The adventures
of these two unlikely characters
are both entertaining and enlightening.
I left the movie with an overwhelming
feeling of relief - that I
have a great life and whenever
I'm down or frustrated, just
remember poor old Miles or
Jack. You definitely don't
have it that bad - even on
your worst day. Oh, and that
I could sure use a vacation
and tour the Santa Barbara
region - which we'll get to
that in a minute - but first,
why the fuss over Pinot Noir
and why did Merlot get such
a bad rap?
Pinot Noir is grown all the
world over; in the United States
(Oregon, California), France
- Burgundy (Côte de Beaune,
Côte de Nuits, Chalonnaise)and
Champagne, Germany, Canada
(BC, Ontario), New Zealand
and many others. Pinot Noir
is a ***** to grow. It is often
referred to as the Holy Grail
in the winemaking communities
outside Europe. It also has
many feminine qualities as
it is an exasperating variety
for many growers, teasing with
its occasional glimpse of riches
but obstinate in its refusal
to be tamed. Being of the feminine
persuasion, I take no offence
in being compared to Pinot
Noir.
It is natural to want to draw
comparisons between the great
red wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy
- but the similarities are
few. Cabernet Sauvignon, predominantly
grown in Bordeaux with acclaimed
high regard, packs a power
of a punch and is the Rocky
of the red grape varietals
- never gives up and always
comes back for more (well at
least five times). Whereas
Pinot Noir travels sullenly,
quietly, with a bit of a personality
disorder, changing tunes quite
frequently and without forewarning.
A definite challenge!
More specifically, Pinot Noir
has no single recognizable
flavour or style unless you
count its perceived sweetness
and its relatively high alcohol
content (12.5% - 13.5%). In
its youth, it can taste of
freshly crushed raspberries
in the Côte de Beaune
wines (Burgundy); ripe, sweet,
strawberries from the Côte
de Nuits; inky colour in young
Chalonnaise reds; and plum
jam in California and New Zealand.
When referring to more mature
red Burgundy, on the other
hand, you are getting into
more complex wines that have
given Burgundy its reputation.
Mature Pinot Noir evolves into
a bouquet of extraordinary
flavours and can suggest anything
from violets (yes really) to
game, to rotten vegetables
(no, it's not a bad wine) to
truffles. In terms of quality,
the peaks and gaps are far
wider with Pinot than for Cabernet.
So if you compare the Pinot
to personality types, perhaps
Miles was so taken with it
because in some ways, he can
identify with this grape. It
speaks to him on some deeper
level and is highly misunderstood.
Who knows?
Viticulturally speaking, Pinot
Noir is an early budder and
early ripener on the vine.
It is best suited to coolish,
preferably marginal climates.
The longer the grapes stay
on the vine before tending
to raisin and surmaturité,
the more complex the resulting
wine. Pinot is also prone to
rot and spring frosts are particularly
dangerous. Not surprisingly,
France has the world's largest
plantings of Pinot with the
majority being grown in the
Northeast with nearly half
the vines in Greater Burgundy
and of those plantings, two
thirds are on the Côte
d'Or region.
Pinot is definitely not a popularist
wine with broad consumer appeal.
One theory may be that Burgundy
has set the standard for this
grape so high. But there too,
wines are often inconsistent,
with quality varying from producer
to producer and between vintages.
The general populace also tends
to steer clear of any labelling
that doesn't immediately tell
them what's in the bottle.
The French have certainly not
made this aspect of wine selection
easy. Perhaps that all adds
to the mystique.
Merlot, on the other hand,
is a much different animal
(I guess I should say grape).
The irony in the movie is that
Miles' favourite wine is the
1961 Cheval-Blanc, Bordeaux
from the commune of St-Emilion
that's a blend of Cabernet
Franc and Merlot. Perhaps in
Miles' defense he may simply
have meant that he doesn't
like Merlot as a 100% grape
varietal but as with many people,
as a blended varietal, why
not?
Merlot has its advantages and
disadvantages. On the plus
side, it's fruity, forward
and a productive grape to grow.
On the minus side, Merlot is
characterized by its relatively
early budding and flowering,
which exposes it to the danger
of spring frosts and coulure
(vine fruit fails to set when
the vine flowers in early summer,
usually due to unsettled weather).
It also ripens early, and being
thinner skinned than its twin,
Cabernet Sauvignon, is it liable
to rot in a wet vintage unless
treated very carefully. Overall,
Merlot tends to be noticeably
lower in tannins (the tea bag
feeling on your teeth and gums
from red wine) than Cabernet,
and higher in sugars.
Merlot is usually regarded
as a blend for Cabernet Sauvignon,
particularly in Bordeaux, but
also throughout many other
wine growing countries that
try to emulate the Bordeaux
greats. Perhaps the most enormous
advantage for this grape (or
disadvantage, depending on
your point of view) is that
its round fruitiness, lowish
tannins and apparent sweetness
make for a wine that can be
enjoyed very early in its development,
unlike Cabernet Sauvignon.
Merlot is a definite underdog,
but as with all underdogs,
its day of reckoning will come.
But more interesting than all
this grape talk is how the
movie has changed wine-making
in a much more significant
way. Santa Barbara County has
benefited in many ways from
the movie. Tourism has quadrupled
and local producers can't keep
up with the demand for more
Pinot than ever before. The
craze and insurgence of people
visiting the area has the locals
aghast. The Santa Barbara Conference
and Visitors Bureau printed
up some 40,000 copies of their
new edition, 'Sideways, the
Map,' which lays out a tour
of the film's locations and
the restaurants visited by
Miles and Jack during the movie.
There is a six pack of wines
featured in the film planned
for release soon - talk about
taking all the romance and
mystery out of a wine vacation!
On the downside, Merlot has
suffered a serious blow from
the single line at the opening
of this article, "If anyone
orders Merlot, I'm leaving.
I am not drinking any f-----g
Merlot." But as with most
press, 'any press is good press
'and soon enough there will
come along some great story
to trumpet the outstanding
virtues of Merlot. Or perhaps
I could pay a tribute to this
overlooked yet fundamental
grape by selecting a few wines
for your next trip to your
local wine merchant.
Whatever your feelings about
Merlot or Pinot Noir, I think
the movie is definitely worth
the rental. If anything, you
will have an opportunity to
see the beautiful vineyard
countryside of Santa Barbara
and see wine in a whole new
light with Miles, your resident
alcoholic sommelier; throw
in some gratuitous sex and
you have the makings of a grand
weekend!
All bottles are quoted in Canadian
funds.
1. Merlot Private Selection
Mondavi Central Coast, California,
2002, $19.95 Tasting notes:
Offering a beautiful cherry-red
color, this wine has an attractively
fruity nose of blackcurrant
and raspberry, along with some
vegetal aromas reminiscent
of green pepper. The palate
reveals healthy acidity, firm
tannins, full texture and a
lovely finish.
2. Merlot Cono Sur Reserve
valle de colchagua, Chili,
2003, $16.60
Tasting notes: Notes of tobacco,
green pepper, wood and cocoa
on the nose. Supple structure
in the mouth. Merlot dominates
this blend, augmented by Cabernet
Sauvignon, Syrah and Bouchet.
3. Merlot Fleur du Cap coastal
region, South Africa, 2003,
$16.60
Tasting notes: This merlot
is a brilliant ruby red colour.
It has an intense nose of ripe
fruit with nuances of mint.
It has a rich concentrated
taste which gives it a very
intense finish.
1. 657361, Vineland Estates
Merlot, VQA, Ontario, 2002,
$ 29.95
Despite some false starts in
the spring, the summer of 2002
in Niagara was long and hot
with the warmth extending deep
into the fall. This lengthy
growing season was a boon to
Vineland's Merlot.
2. 330241, Sterling Merlot,
Napa Valley, California, 2001,
$28.95
Tasting notes: rich and jammy
with plum, ripe berry, cherry
nose. Full-bodied ripe fruit
centre with hints of spice
and toasty oak. Long, full-flavoured
finish.
3. 9611227, Moueix Merlot,
AC Bordeaux, Christian Moueix,
Bordeaux, $14.95
Tasting notes: Soft and round
with aromas of raspberry, cedar
and blueberry. Ripe fruit,
great balance and a medium
long finish.
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