Pinot Noir Taste Off – Episode #221

April 20, 2007

Wines tasted in this episode:

Gary Vaynerchuk and four different wines made from the Pinot Noir grape.

Having trouble seeing this video? Click here for the Quicktime version

167 Responses

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June 15, 2009

Phredd
QOTD: Can I say both? I wasn’t a big pinot drinker until Sideways, preferring cabernet sauvignon. Now I have tried more pinot and have realized I was missing lot. I still am not a huge fan of merlot, in general, and that made the parts dissing merlot funnier. On the other hand, pinot prices are starting to get a bit ridiculous. There are some small-production pinots I’ve had recently that are charging $40/bottle that are worth maybe $10. “Buy with care” seems to apply particularly to pinot noir.

However that may be, Sideways was good for the wine industry overall.
January 22, 2009

WineWoman
QOTD: Absolutely loved Sideways. Pinot Noir wasn’t my favorite type of wine, but the movie got me to try more of them, and enjoy them very much. I was never a big Merlot fan, but that hasn’t stopped me from drinking them and finding some I like. Unfortunately, the Cali Pinots began to saturate the market and people trying them for the first time, thought they should be a big, sweet wine that contained a hefty amount of Syrah. I don’t remember the year Sideways came out, but admittedly, I boycotted French wines for a long time because they didn’t join us in the War. If you look at my wine-buying receipts, you will notice I’ve gotten over that a long long time ago. Viva La France….
June 26, 2008

Dessert Wine Nerd
How nerdy is it that Im excited that the screen is about 3x larger than the one on youtube? Love the tasting notes on the Chehalem… Im a huge pepper and spice fan.
January 2, 2008

Aave
There should be a movie for all the grapes, from aglianico to viognier and from pinot grigio to petit verdot. They’ve all earned the effort.
April 28, 2007

JimCT
Really kind of liked Sideways. Some funny bits that were still funny the second time around. Great movie? Not quite, but what other wine movies were?

As for the prices, I got hit by the fact that Hitching Post was featured. It was one of my early favorites and the mid-90’s vintages were my first Pinots that sat in my “cellar” for a few years. Those wines were delicious. They weren’t all that cheap back then (for me / around $32-$35). and I suppose the movie accelerated that inflation. But some day I’ll buy them again.
April 24, 2007

Bexter
Glad you loved the Chehalem, and happy someone corrected your mispronunciation of Oregon. I loved Willamette Valley pinot well before “Sideways,” and the good ones have always seemed pretty spendy, but many worth it, too.

I thought Sideways was a brilliant movie! I’m amazed by how many comments refer to the dislike of the characters. Personally, I would never judge a movie based upon the “likability” of the characters–I watch it for entertainment, not to find friends. In fact, if I find myself “hating” a character, then I’ve obviously been moved, emotionally speaking, and that’s impressive in my opinion. As for the repercussions on the wine market…I’ll keep a positive attitude and appreciate the affordable merlot.
April 24, 2007

GingerFe
Not Fair! Why did you taste an 04 Chambolle in this mix… 04s just don’t stand up… I’d be curious if you had tried an 02 or 03 from the same producer, would you have had the same notes….I think it’s important to match apples to apples.. Yes? Of course, the Aussie was the wild card.
April 24, 2007

Susan
Gary-
Great Ep!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can’t afford these yet………………..
Susan
April 24, 2007

wayno da wino
If you drink no Noir, you Pinot Noir !!
April 23, 2007

Adolfo Orendain
For us Pinot Noir lovers, Sideways just made them more expensive.
Although i liked the movie, it is interesting to see the Hollywood influence even on Wine.

If there is grape that can get you in good mood. That is Pinot Noir!
April 23, 2007

Kirk
QOTD: Sideways was a gateway to bring wine into the spotlight…I don’t think you can account for a movies success in the rising prices of Pinot Noir. I think that possibly the movie opened peoples eyes to wine as a whole…and thus brought more people to the market. With more people in the market there are less available wines…driving up the prices. I’m just glad that they shot the film in Santa Barbera and not Newburg, OR. I personally didn’t find the movie altering my tastes at all…however a weekend touring Willamette Valley DID. As for other trends…I’d like to see a movie shot about the finger lakes…maybe that’d be a great way to see if sales go up there. Look for an increase in popularity of Provance, France in the next few years….and if it happens we can all thank Russel Crowe.
April 23, 2007

TagWorld Brian
Since there’s apparently no new episode today, let me take a moment to mention another amazing Pinot Noir: Duckhorn Goldeneye Anderson Valley 2004. WS91: “This wine exhibits dusty berry, cola and wild raspberry flavors in a complex, well-focused style. Ripe and tannic, it finishes with nice fruit and tannin traction. Drink now through 2011.”) Another review said: “This is a delectable, full-bodied wine with a smooth mouth feel, fine tannin structure, lush texture and a lingering finish. The aroma is complex with notes of cherry, earth, smoke, cedar and flowers. The flavors are predominantly plum, blackberry, and strawberry with a hint of truffles and a spicy dash of black pepper on the lingering finish.” I agree. The Duckhorn was an incredible PN. It had a medium-light color, but the nose was seductive – dark, earthy, and a little gamey. The flavors were cherry and dark berry, and a little spice. It was rounded, fairly full-bodied, and had a great, lasting finish. I know I’m echoing Spectator’s notes, but they are dead-on IMHO.

Also, last night my Dad and I shared a Sapphire Hill Pinot Noir 2004. It was hot at first (would decanting have helped that?), but delicious flavor profile and finish. Black cherry/berries/tea/spice.
April 23, 2007

Randy
So true Ken.

Merlot is what I generally want to drink while my Cab is laying down for several years
April 23, 2007

Dave-from-Katonah
6:15 and no new episode? Bad w/e in Chi-town?
We await the new arrival with patience…
April 23, 2007

Ken
Sideways was great and Paul G. was amaizing. This movie made me appreciate Pinot Noir and try different types of wines that I never paid attention to before.B4 Sideways, all I drank was merlot and Cabs.
April 23, 2007

Like 'em Rounded and Aged
100% love what Sideways did to the cost of Merlot and Cab Franc prices! I prefer those grapes over California Pinots anyway.
April 23, 2007

Dusty
QOTD: I had the unfortunate luck of really starting to get into wine right before Sideways came out. I like the movie. It’s entertaining and whatnot, but for the longest time as a new wine drinker I avoided Pinot Noir and Merlot because I didn’t want people to think that I was drinking it solely based on that movie. Although lately, not that I think about it, Sideways is almost always playing in the background when my few wine friends and I pop open a bottle.
April 23, 2007

Jon B
Hi Ken,

The bottle shape is pretty much just marketing following French tradition. It used to be that big Bordeaux wines threw tannins and tartrates as a sediment to the side or bottom of the bottle, and you needed the high shoulder to catch the sediment when you decanted. Burgundy wines, on the other hand, tended not to throw a sediment as often, so they wanted every drop of the wine to slide out easily from the bottle. Nowadays it doesn’t really matter, but wine geeks like me are quick to think a Pinot looks odd in a Bordeaux bottle, like the New Zealand Pinot Gary just tasted.

I agree that the fat-bottomed bottles are a pain in the rack. But those heavy glass bottles do help with market perception on higher-end wines.
April 23, 2007

Ken
Gary, Good episode today. Iâ€™ve always been curious; why are Pinot Noir bottles the shape that hey are? It really doesnâ€™t bother me but some people I know hate the shape because it make the wine hard to store.

QOTD: Iâ€™m really not all that mad at Sideways. I wasnâ€™t a big PN drinker before Sideways and Iâ€™m still not. I guess the price bump is a little aggravating. I probably would have been more upset if the focus was on Rhone varietals such as Grenache & Syrah. However, I do like what Sideways did to the demand for Merlot. Iâ€™m a Merlot fan as long as it is well made â€“ Washington, Right Bank, etc. People that think Merlot sucks havenâ€™t had good Merlot.
April 23, 2007

Photo Joe
I’m actually a big fan of Sideways, because as a new comer (who now works in a retail store selling wine), I found the movie to be great, because it made me feel closer to the wine world, but now that I know what I’m talking about (for the most part)in my store, I find it disturbing that my favorite piont noirs are going up out of my price range. We had to pass on some great Pinot Noir this year, like Carr, because of the price increase. This is really upsetting, because I just started experiencing Pinot Noirs that are huge in tannins and greatly balanced and full bodied! Pinot Noirs are not my favorite, but they could be, if I could experiment with them more often.
I’m actually a huge hipocryte, because I don’t mind paying $35 for a good Cabernet, but I DO mind paying $35 for the best Pinot Noir.

Hmmmmmmmmmm, I’ll have to think about this… good question of the day!

Photo Joe
April 23, 2007

Tony S.
Nice…well…Pinot’s are my favorite. In fact, if I had to only drink one kind of wine for the rest of my life, it would be Burgundy. As for the movie, I thought it was entertaining, and when I saw it, I knew right away that PN was going to become bigger and Merlots were going to slump. But that’s just what happens with movies.

So, I guess you could say I just expected that to happen, and so I wasn’t really mad. I didn’t LOVE the movie, it was alright. But, my wife used to love Merlot, and after that movie she has a stigma about it. It’s kind of funny.

OK…enjoy Chicago while you’re here. Go to Weiner Circle and get yourself a hot dog with everything on it–they go great with Vega Sicilia “Unico”, and then go to Lou Malnatti’s and get some deep dish pizza.

OK…see you later,
Go BEARS!!
T
April 23, 2007

Lawrence Leichtman
This episode was so timely as we are headed to Willamette Valley tomorrow and Chehalem is on our list of places to go. Somewhat hard to follow the smell comment of old fingernails and Cyndi Lauper though I have some idea of what Chrisitina Aguillera smells like but don’t know why.

Sideways was a fun movie except for trashing Merlot that can be a great wine (inlcuding his horded Cheval Blanc) and pushing the price up on Pinot Noir and forcing the producers to make wine that violates what he espouses of a delicate wine.
April 23, 2007

thabeav
Gary,

Two quick questions:

1)Could you stop abusing the wines? Watching you use $50+ wine to wash your glass hurts me. Some of us po’ folk use water to rinse our glasses. Your flippant wasting of great juice makes me wonder: are there Vayniaks who hangout outside your store to get the “crumbs” left after the episode?

2)What’s up with your scoring system? In recent epsiode, you described a wine as “boring” and “average,” yet gave it 86 points?! Shouldn’t average, much less boring, get around 75 points? You seem to have a disproportionate number of scores from 86-91 points.

3) WHY would you leave pinot open for nine hours??? Syrah, I get, but Pinot?

Regardless, you have the best blog on the net and EVERY episode is fun, education, and entertaining. Our entire research lab now gathers at lunch to watch each day’s episode at my computer. Congratulations on a great show. We love it!

QOTD: Sideways will always be tainted by the scene of the LARGE NAKED MAN running down the street.
April 23, 2007

Jen
Plus, I did that scene from “Sideways” [between Miles and Maya] in my acting class… and it was AWESOME. [Patting myself on the back...] Ha ha ha!! And, ps I didn’t read any of the other comments before I posted, but yeah, I guess if it drove the prices up then yes, that would be a reason it ruined pinot… but pinot is so gooooood… isn’t it worth it? Besides, everything costs more these days. I just paid $3.45 a gallon for gasoline…. disgusting! Pinot is much more useful.
April 23, 2007

Jen
QOTD: I love “Sideways”, for all reasons: one because it was a great movie, two because it got me thinking about wine in a way I never had before. It increased my interest and my curiosity; not just for pinot, but for all wine, and especially for exploring more of the beautiful state in which I live (CA, peeps..!) and I have learned and experienced so much since then. Sure, it’s Hollywood, but how could it possibly have ruined anything for anybody?? I thought we were here to CHANGE THE WINE WORLD! Aren’t we?!?! It’s my way of thinking that to say the movie ruined pinot noir is to maintain an elitist attitude about wine. No way, man. If you love it, you love it. Period! There’s room for everyone. Thanks for doing this episode, Gary.