![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
The Wine Speech from Sideways
Dec. 21st, 2010 01:06 pmThis sums up quite nicely my love for wine in general. I fell in love with red wine, in particular, all over again on the cruise with my father through Scandinavia (3 different wine tastings) and after I saw this scene in Sideways. Matt's more of a Pinot Noir person than I am, but this scene made me want to try all different wineries' Pinots. I typically would choose a Zinfandel or a Shiraz before a Pinot, rarely a Merlot, and often a Beaujolais Nouveau when in season (which always reminds me of Leipzig, Germany). I do love Bordeaux wines, and Cabernet Sauvignon is fun when you don't want to expend the energy to think about what you're enjoying.
____________________________________________________
[Sitting outside on a porch after dusk under low light.]
Miles Raymond: ... Why are you into wine?
Maya: Oh I... I think I... I originally got in to wine through my ex-husband.
Miles Raymond: Ah.
Maya: You know, he had this big, sort of show-off cellar, you know.
Miles Raymond: Right.
Maya: But then I discovered that I had a really sharp palate.
Miles Raymond: Uh-huh.
Maya: And the more I drank, the more I liked what it made me think about.
Miles Raymond: Like what?
Maya: Like what a fraud he was.
[Miles laughs softly.]
Maya: No, I- I like to think about the life of wine.
Miles Raymond: Yeah.
Maya: How it's a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I'd opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks, like your '61. And then it begins its steady, inevitable decline.
Miles Raymond: Hmm.
Maya: And it tastes so fucking good.
____________________________________________________
I have an appreciation for white wines, as well, but my go-to white is Chardonnay or Chablis. Pinot Grigio is fun as are some Rieslings. I'm very partial to a German wine that we can't get here - Frankenwein - from the northern section of Bavaria. Gorgeous wine that tastes best there. There are some really great Rhine wines and Baden wines from southern Germany, as well, but they are best enjoyed during the late spring and summer in their regions. I would love to find a good Staufen wine again.
Sigh...
____________________________________________________
[Sitting outside on a porch after dusk under low light.]
Miles Raymond: ... Why are you into wine?
Maya: Oh I... I think I... I originally got in to wine through my ex-husband.
Miles Raymond: Ah.
Maya: You know, he had this big, sort of show-off cellar, you know.
Miles Raymond: Right.
Maya: But then I discovered that I had a really sharp palate.
Miles Raymond: Uh-huh.
Maya: And the more I drank, the more I liked what it made me think about.
Miles Raymond: Like what?
Maya: Like what a fraud he was.
[Miles laughs softly.]
Maya: No, I- I like to think about the life of wine.
Miles Raymond: Yeah.
Maya: How it's a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I'd opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks, like your '61. And then it begins its steady, inevitable decline.
Miles Raymond: Hmm.
Maya: And it tastes so fucking good.
____________________________________________________
I have an appreciation for white wines, as well, but my go-to white is Chardonnay or Chablis. Pinot Grigio is fun as are some Rieslings. I'm very partial to a German wine that we can't get here - Frankenwein - from the northern section of Bavaria. Gorgeous wine that tastes best there. There are some really great Rhine wines and Baden wines from southern Germany, as well, but they are best enjoyed during the late spring and summer in their regions. I would love to find a good Staufen wine again.
Sigh...
