Bottle Shock – Sideways uncorking Other

Bottle Shock is a temporary condition of wine characterized by flavors of fruit muted or disjointed usually caused by wines that have been shaken in travel.

Bottle Shock is a fun movie, though not look completely factual events leading up to the famous 1976 Judgement "in Paris, where Californian wines beat out their counterparts French in a blind tasting put California wines firmly on the map of wine. It's a good romp in the vineyard and shows us what the Napa of old and how things have changed since then.

As a young college student traveling through Napa in 1976, I found it difficult to understand how this event transformed the industry California's wine country. The great buildings of Inglenook, Beringer, Krug and shared the stage with names latest Grgich, Stags Leap, Mondavi and Sterling and were producing wines world class. Not sure what the Europeans? Well, a trip to Europe in the late 70s showed that the wine made across the "pond" were not the names above mentioned, but the wines were bottled from vineyards of Modesto, Bakersfield and Fresno. Good marketing had trumped good wine.

Back to the movie … History is told alternating between Napa Valley and Paris as follows Jim Barrett (played a bit hard by Bill Pullman), a lawyer who followed his dream by ditching the suits, buying a winery ( Chateau Montelena) and striving to make the world's greatest Chardonnay. Like many a winemaker, then as now, his company is struggling and is requesting the loan the bank's third party.

In Paris Steven Spurrier (played wonderfully by Alan Rickman) is a priggish British wine merchant with a struggling wine shop who has the idea of a staging a blind tasting between French and California wines. Rickman is about 28 years older than Spurrier was at the time and plays the Brit as a vintage wine snob. After Spurrier arrrives in the Napa juxstoposition him against the backdrop of rural Napa is often hilarious.

Spurrier has denounced the film for mistruths many embellishments and all and adopts a different version written by George Taber, who witnessed the actual proof. The new movie "The Judgement of Paris" will be released later this year. Others questioned why title = "Mike Grgich"> Mike Grgich, who actully made the winning wine for Chataeu Montelena not get a mention in the film.

Both Bo and Jim Barrett, and many other old hands in the valley helped with the story that was written by Jody Savin, Ross Schwartz and Director Randy Miller. Writers Hollywood can sometimes enhance or ruin a story that depending on your taste and proximently to actual events. This film is entertaining and certainly worth seeing. To a factual description check out more of George Taber's book, Judgement of Paris: California vs France and the historical 1976 Paris tasting that revolutionized wine, or wait for the new movie.

Bo (Chris Pine), son of hippie the winery's owner only has ambitions a good time. Bramber Gustavo (Freddy Rodriguez) rat basement the most serious and responsible "has visions of becoming a great producer. Sam (Rachael Taylor) the love interest is fictional but opens a window for the development of animal Bo losing party promoter cellar. The film follows alternately, and a little clumsy, Spurrier as he makes his way through Napa Valley tasting, agitation, spitting and recognizing the quality of wines from California and Jim and Bo Barrett sparing (literally) as the father and son with the work ethic and different goals.

The movie is filmed with breathtaking views of wine country and certainly reminds us how beautiful the Napa Valley. Many scenes are filmed in the vineyard with the actors poking about the vines very carefully. (The mature fruit of the vine appears to have been close to harvest time and, undoubtedly, the vineyard owner had instructed the crew not touch anything!)

The winery scenes are a bit staged, but the film works and that the story is true enough to be important and enjoyable enough to be fun. The story ends as wine finds its way to the tasting of Paris – and the rest, as they say, is history. The movie has a great 70, the soundtrack was mastered with a lot of Doobie Brothers setting the tone. Also stars Dennis Farina Elia and Dishku.

As an ironic footnote to the end of July This year Bo and Jim Barrett announced that Chateau Montelena will be sold, pending government approval, to Michel Reybier, owner of Chateau Cos Bordeaux d'Estournel, a famed French winery.

About the Author

Cleveland is the founder of the online winery directory www.CaliforniaWineryAdvisor.com where hundreds of wineries are profiled in rich detail and cataloged by wine types, winery amenities, ambiances, tasting fees and hours of operation. Cleveland has been in the wine trade as a educator, writer, photographer, salesman, cellar rat, and most recently “The Winery Advisor”. He makes his home in San Luis Obispo and can be reached at: BCleveland@CaWineryAdvisor.com

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