Learn about Wines in Tokyo

Thursday 8 May 2014

Wine at the Movies


Here are 5 good movie wines

Ratatouille – This super-cute Pixar feature plots the exploits of Remy, a rat who is determined to become a chef in one of Paris’s best restaurants. Along with the beautifully rendered food shown throughout the movie, the filmmakers have paid particular attention to the featured wines. And what wines! The intimidating restaurant critic Anton Ego is served a bottle of 1947 Cheval Blanc, while the villainous head chef Skinner pours a 1961 Château Latour for Remy’s human sidekick, Linguini. And the vinous connections don’t end there: the plate of Ratatouille served up at the climax of the film was designed by none other than Thomas Keller of the French Laundry in Napa.

James Bond – Bond is of course famous for taking his Martinis shaken, not stirred, but the man enjoys a nice glass of Bordeaux now and then. In Goldfinger, he opts for a bottle of Château Mouton Rothschild, while in the more-recent Casino Royale, he defects to the Right Bank with Saint-Émilion's Château Angélus. 007 has also been known to dabble in a range of other wines – among them Taittinger Champagne, German Riesling, Chianti and, most curiously, a little-known local white from the Greek island of Corfu.

Silence of the Lambs – Speaking of Chianti, no list of movie wines would be complete without Hannibal Lecter’s most famous food and wine pairing. Although there is no sign of the wine itself in the scene, Hannibal tells FBI agent Clarice Starling: “A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.” The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema chain has capitalized on this extremely quotable line, releasing a wine called Cannibal Chianti for moviegoers.

Hannibal Lecter really knows his stuff when it comes to wine and food matching. In the sequel to Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, he matches a Clos Sainte Hune Riesling from Alsace with, erm, brains.

The Godfather – Francis Ford Coppola’s epic saga of an organized crime family is widely considered one of the greatest stories ever told on the silver screen. Wine features heavily throughout the films, accurately reflecting the Italian tradition of making and drinking homemade wine. The most eagle-eyed of wine buffs will know Michael Corleone drank Bardolino at his son’s communion party. The scene where Don Vito Corleone is musing about how he likes to drink more wine than he used to is one of the film’s best.

The Best of the Rest – There are too many other notable mentions of wine in the movies to pick just one. In Iron Man 3, who could miss Louis Jadot’s product placement, or the fact that a billionaire like Tony Stark likes drinking simple Mâcon Villages? What about Kyle MacLachlan pouring Cristal all over Nomi in that pool scene in Showgirls? Perhaps only the most nerdy of us would have spotted Château Clinet poured in oh-so-cool wine glasses at Martin Vanger’s kitchen table in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. And, of course, nothing has ever made us want to drink Pinot Noir more than Miles’ famous reverie about the grape variety in Sideways:
“Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they’re just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and… ancient on the planet.”

No comment on Merlot…

* For a more complete list of wines and spirits in movies, click here.

Source: http://www.wine-searcher.com/

No comments:

Post a Comment