Last year Mr. P and I enjoyed a quick getaway to Napa Valley. I think California wine country is just gorgeous, and most of our recent vacations have been to one wine-producing area or another of the state. But this was the first time we've been to Napa since January 2000 and things have changed!
For one thing, this time we had a plan. We saw "Bottle Shock" last year when it came out, and planned our little vacation around it, visiting Chateau Montelena and Stag's Leap and Gustavo Thrace. We also ate very, very well.
Back in 1976, when "Bottle Shock" takes place, the Napa we know did not exist. It was farmland, with a few wineries. There was no Culinary Institute, no French Laundry, no Wine Train. Fortunately, there is still enough beautiful farmland that the filmmakers were able to find the shots they needed.
"Bottle Shock," of course, stars one of my favorite actors, Alan Rickman. I love the scene where he's tasting a wine at a card table beside a dirt road, and the winemaker, wearing his overalls, comes up with a bowl of guacamole - something that Rickman's character, an Englishman, would surely never have seen. The appalled look on his face as he considers this green muck is priceless, but the transition to delight as he absorbs the flavor is a masterpiece.
The movie also stars Bill Pullman, who played the president in "Independence Day" and has not been a huge star since. He's excellent in the film as a lawyer who, post-divorce, chucks it all to start making wine in Calistoga. Then deep in debt and obsessed with classical winemaking method, his character Jim Barrett became an elder statesman of the Napa Valley.
Barrett's son Bo is another important character in the movie, well-played by Chris Pine (now the new Captain Kirk). Bo is now the winemaker at Chateau Montelena, and our tasting there was certainly a testament to his ability.
The fourth major character is Gustavo Brambila, as the Mexican-American "cellar rat" who aspires to be a winemaker himself. Well, now he is, and the 2006 Pinot Noir he made with his partner Thrace Bromberger was a thing of beauty.
"Bottle Shock" was kind of a feast, for me; great acting, great scenery, a great true story and a road map to a lot of great wine. Just make sure you've got a good bottle to go with it.
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