Who Would you Rather Drink with: Indiana Jones or The Terminator?

Wine and movies. These are the two game changers in my life.  For me, nothing is better than a great Saturday night of drinking wines with friends, laughing and raging until the wee hours of the morning.  The only thing that comes close to that is the Sunday that follows a great Saturday night, jam packed full of laying and doing absolutely nothing but watching what some would call, “Sick ass movies”. 

You don’t have to be a wine fanatic to have heard of the two most famous French appellations; Burgundy and Bordeaux…Maybe you’ve even been at a dinner party where two old guys with white ruffled Shakespeare shirts are arguing about which of the two regions is “far more superior for my palate”?  I’ve been trying to think of a way to describe and/or compare Burgundy and Bordeaux that is easy to understand without having to go too into structure and grape varieties. I was going to compare and contrast Bach with Mozart for this, but I’d like you to actually finish reading this post rather than jumping out of the highest and nearest window. No disrespect to JB, Ammo and the classic era but I think I have a more interesting comparison that involves directors whose movies are similar to the characteristics of Burgundy and Bordeaux wines.

If I was going to compare one director to Burgundy and another to Bordeaux, it would be Steven Spielberg (Burgs) and James Cameron (BDX).

Burgundy wines are the most complete mix of power, elegance, emotion (and awesomeness) you can get out of a wine. Because of the importance and focus on terroir, there are so many high quality wines being produced that are completely unique from one another.

Jaws?  E.T? Saving Private Ryan? All of the Indiana Jones movies (minus the new one)!? Try listing off all of the amazing and unique movies Spielberg has made.  It’s just as difficult listing off great Burgs  (Le Chambertin, La Tache, Romanee Conti, Clos St. Jacques) and the main reasons are because of terroir and tradition. These two things are like have a world class director and a home run screen play.  It leads to many producers in Burgundy doing great things and having very successful vintages year in and year out.  In regard to Burgs film director counterpart, Senor Spielbergo, he is responsible for creating some of the greatest movies of our time and of the future (Lincoln with Daniel Day Lewis coming Xmas 2012).  Burgundy and Spielberg can bring out raw emotion and also have the ability make you just in your tracks and just think.  I guarantee everyone who is reading this either cried at the end of Schindler’s List (when he is counting how many more people he could have saved) or during multiple parts of Saving Private Ryan…Or even when Rufio died in Hook.  I know it’s hard to believe, but I also can guarantee that some of these Grand cru wines like Le Chambertin and move people to tears as well…I know I’ve had to take a few knees after having my mind blown tasting a few of these wines. Spielberg and Burgundy make countless classics and will continue to do so for many years to come.

Bordeaux has been compared to James Cameron by me for many reasons but mainly because both the movies and the wines are big ass spectacles every time they come out. Every time they are released it is supposed to be the most life altering experience in the history of the world that end up making billions of dollars. The twist part about it all is that coincidentally (or not); James Cameron has only made five movies that really matter with Terminator, T2, Aliens, Titanic, and Avatar.  Bordeaux only has five first growth wines that “matter” aka rake in all of the cash with Chateau Lafite, Margeaux, Haut Brion, Latour and Mouton Rothschild. These are all big, bad, awesome wines/movies there is no denying that.  They will blow your mind  to the fullest extent.  I just think that there might be too many special effects (aka too much oak and chapitalizing) and the story lines are too basic/corny to put these movies/wines on the same level as Burgundy and Spielberg. Plus the rest of Bordeaux isn’t doing so well.  They are making great wines all over BDX but the big 5 end up turning a lot of consumers away because they create the perception that the only Bordeaux’s worth drinking cost you $1000 plus your first born son.  Don’t get me wrong T2 would probably be my movie to watch before I die and I’ll watch Titanic by myself after a bubble bath, but as a whole, Cameron’s movies just aren’t as emotionally or intellectually stimulating as Spielberg.

If you couldn’t tell I clearly prefer Burgundy to Bordeaux. Is it because I live in Burgundy and feel like I truly understand it better than I do Bordeaux wines? Probably.  I think Burgundy wines are so complete and well-structured from the early stages it is hard not to prefer them. You can drink them now, but their structure can allow you to age them for decades. Bordeaux is so damn expensive and overpowering when young that I don’t know I will ever get a chance to understand it…Especially when it is fully mature (they say these can be ready in 30-50 years).  Would I drink a Grand Cru Burgundy over a First Growth Bordeaux? 9 times out of 10, yes.  It’s really a matter of opinion though because there are always those times where you just want to turn your surround sound up to 30 and watch Terminator 2 over any Steven Spielberg movie.

Since we are kind of on the topic, which movies are the sickest; All Indiana Jones movies or the Terminator and T2? Comment below

Wine, Patrick Rafter and The Joker: Australia is Awesome

Time is money out here in France, so I’m going to make this short and sweet; Start drinking more Australian wine.  I’ve honestly been thinking about this since the wine fair in Dusseldorf and it hasn’t been able to escape my mind. To find a Burgundy wine merchant carrying even one Australian wine is about as likely as Rick Santorum winning the United States Presidential election this year. The only difference is I wouldn’t jump off of a cliff if I found a bottle or two of Aussie Shiraz in Dijon.

Without going too in depth about wine geek talk, I want to establish that the massive fruit bomb 18% alcohol Shiraz represents all Australian wines the same way The Situation from Jersey Shore represents all Italians…They don’t.  Barossa Valley still brings the big dogs around but other regions like Margaret River and the McLaren Vale have really made their wines more focused and terroir driven (and these are  the regions I really recommend exploring).

The perfect example of this style of Aussie wines that many wine drinkers may not be familiar with comes from the Jones Block Shiraz from Paxton Vineyards (http://www.paxtonvineyards.com/home.php).  This would have to be the most complex wine I’ve ever had from Australia.  It brings a beautiful mouth of fruit while bringing an amazing structure of tannins, acid and alcohol to balance it out perfectly.  It is almost as if it is a perfect combination between Northern Rhone and a great big Aussie Shiraz.  This can be explained because the Jones Block Shiraz comes from vines that are around a century old (older vines =deeper roots and less fruit production which = higher quality grapes).  Hopefully this wine and similar (or at least attempting to be similar) Shiraz’s are being imported all around the globe because these seriously need to be tasted by all.

Another reason why I believe Australia is a great wine region to support is that the people who are involved in the industry over there are extremely open minded in terms of adapting to new issues in the wine sector… They are also, as I would say, hella nice (maybe even the nicest).  Their passion and personality strikes many similarities with microbrewers and winemakers from the Pacific Northwest in my opinion.

I must say it feels good to be excited about another wine region in the world (Northwest wines in the USA and Burgundy will always be top for me though).  Obviously I love all types of wine (including Carlo Rossi), but it takes a lot for me to get pumped (this means excited for you old timers) about a whole wine region. To my very good friend and Barclay Webster (Aussie wine professional) back in Seattle, I’m expecting the finest tasting in history lined up for me when I get home.

Anyone have any good suggestions on other Australian wine producers or know any importers who can get me a case of Jones Block in Europe??? Let me know!

Money, Respect and Undies- Things That can Vanish at a Wine Fair

Any event that has 15,000 attendees (that isn't about Star Wars) and over 1,000 producers (not of comic books), all with the same intentions (to buy and sell wine) for three consecutive days must be classified as an intense and/or drastic experience.  Prowein in Dusseldorf fits that description and is absolutely drastic. It isn’t necessary to ramble on for 800 words describing how humbled I was by the massive convention center or how inferior it made me feel. The six pairs of socks and undies I went through in three days display that for me (didn’t really happen I swear, but my dogs were howling after all of that walking in dress shoes).  

An important lesson I learned from Prowein is that it’s probably best to not leave your sister, mom, wife, grandma or cousin alone at one of these massive wine fairs. It is so easy to get “lost” or “separated”.  You assume someone is just cruising around and tasting some interesting new wine or making a new business contact and that you’ll find them in a couple of minutes.  In reality, Gianluigi the stud winemaker working in Wines of Sicily just swept your sister off of her feet and they are headed to the Dusseldorf Marriot to take an in depth look at his “wine portfolio”.  Clearly I’m just joking, but boy those Italians have some serious Uncle Jesse swag (Full House reference) with the ladies.   

What I truly realized while being in Dusseldorf is how the majority of the people in the wine business fail to keep up with the changing times in new technology and the possibility of reaching new customers.   Most of these “experts” on social media (of course there are exceptions) are old guys who look at these online channels of communication simply as research for the future.  They aren't actually using them the way they are intended to.  The focus seems to be trying to teach the old dogs new tricks, getting the old timers to start doing business through these channels rather than using them to focus on building relationships with wine consumers who spend the majority of their time online. Typically those are younger consumers.  

Social media shouldn’t be looked at as an investment for the future but the current and way to communicate with everyone and anyone. It will also be constantly evolving. If you are still skeptical about having a portion of your business dedicated to online social media then you are probably reading this while doing a 1,000 piece puzzle and eating a bowl of microwaved grape nuts cereal…because you are really really old.

Unfortunately, a lot of the people in the wine industry that do recognize the importance of these channels, spend most of their time discussing boring wine topics with each other. Instead, they could be out there reaching new consumers.   It’s like everyone who is online in the wine industry thinks their latest blog post replying to someone's opinion about biodynamic wines is going to change the wine industry for the next 100 years.  The truth is it probably won't even be read.  I am curious to know how many people have the same 2 to 50 people reading their blog posts that cover brow raising topics such as screw caps and sulfur in wine.  I respect freedom of speech and I know everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but like my mom always says, if you don’t have anything interesting to say then don’t post it on the internet.   To get more people to learn about wine we need to do it with fun and interesting things for them to read.

It is pretty sad seeing quality wine not being sold because the decision makers in a business don’t know what they are doing.  If your stand at Prowein isn’t getting any attention from people who went out of their way to fly to Germany, pay to be at Prowein and love wine more than life itself, then how are you going to convince normal consumers to buy your wines?  The same thing goes for people trying to do blogs and being active in social media. If nobody is listening maybe it is time to think maybe it’s your message that is the issue.

For anyone interested…

WINES I REALLY ENJOYED AT PROWEIN:

Lidio Carraro (Brazil) Brazil makes really bomb red and sparkling wine now so jump on the bandwagon. Winebow imports this producers wine so you will definitely be able to find them in the USA and most likely Seattle. Awesome Bordeaux blend (which means it has Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc in it). Also had a wine made from 100% Tannant (grape) that was a game changer. Trust me this producer is really good.

Stella Bella (Australia)- Had a great Syrah that tasted like a perfect mixture between Aussie Shiraz and Northern Rhone (had some viognier in it). Very impressive and eye opening in showing where Australian wines are heading (Lower Alcohol and more structure).

Hedges Family Estates (Washington State) Their CMS blend (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah) is truly outstanding and always consistent.  It was great to see Washington wines representing nicely at Prowein.  This is a great priced bottle ($14) that everyone should try to get a feel for how Washington wines should taste.

Nove Vinarstvi (Czech Republic)- My most pleasant surprise of Prowein was to find that my Czech brethren have the ability to make some extremely unique sauvignon blanc.  Good balance of fruit and minerality that comes from the limestone soils.  The Czech wine industry has a promising future with proper marketing and branding.  Hopefully it can make its way to the United States.