Scenes from ‘Somm’, available on Netflix (credit: SommTV)
Hey, dear readers, Breno here.
Let’s talk community service in times of quarantine: I thought about bringing you some recommendations of movies and TV shows about wine, vineyards, producers, sommeliers and the wine market! There are documentaries, drama movies and series as well.
I decided to gather some nice references that are easy to find – so you don’t have to roam across the vast world of internet searching for them. They are all available on Netflix or Amazon Prime (but you can also look for some of them on iTunes or your on-demand TV services as well).
Get your bottles and glasses ready, it’s time to turn on the TV (or PC, laptop, iPad) screen.
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Films and TV shows about wine you need to watch
Somm (2012)
This documentary follows four people working their way to become Master Sommeliers – as you may imagine, a herculean effort that very few people manage to achieve. An excellent choice for those who, like me, are trying to learn more about tasting (not that I’m that ambitious to think I would ever become a great sommelier!). It also has a nice 2015 follow-up, “Somm: Into the Bottle”, that instead focus on wines themselves.
Where to watch: Netflix and Amazon Prime
Uncorked (2015)
Like “Somm”, this doc series also follows wine sommeliers on their preparations for their Master Sommelier over three months. “Uncorked” features the six aspiring masters and their very different personalities as they train their methods of tasting and engage in competition. A lighter choice compared to “Somm”, but also less ambitious and more reality show-like.
(Netflix is also releasing on March 27 “Uncorked”, a feature film of the same name – also about an aspiring Master Sommelier.)
Where to watch: Amazon Prime
It Starts With Wine (2019)
This newly released series produced by Wine Enthusiast follows influential personalities in the wine world (such as winemakers, enologists, sommeliers and personalities, but also chefs and celebs), with a very sophisticated photography in locations in South America and California, for instance. Perfect for foodies and travel enthusiasts, as well.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime
A Year in Port (2016)
This documentary closes the so-called Wine Trilogy, consisting also of “A Year in Burgundy” and “A Year in Champagne”. It focuses on the winemaking traditions of the Port wineries by the Douro River. But why do we recommend this one? Well, I’ve been in Portugal for about enough time to acknowledge that a nice Port (like our splendid partner Quinta do Vallado’s ABF 1888) is very hard to beat. Sorry, French friends!
Where to watch: Amazon Prime
Sour Grapes (2016)
Well, it may sound strange, but this documentary is actually about crime. “Sour Grapes” follows the story of wine fraudster Rudy Kurniawan and the famous victims he made. Long story short: in the early 2000s, Kurniawan started buying rare vintages, only to sell them years later for extremely high prices. The problem is that the wines had been counterfeit. Thrilling!
Where to watch: Netflix
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Three feature films that are also all about wine, even though they are dramatized stories: Sideways (Alexander Payne, 2004), A Good Year (Ridley Scott, 2006) and Bottle Shock (Randall Miller, 2008).
I promise to give you more tips during the next days!
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PS. You must subscribe to the next initial bottle offering (IBO) that’s going to be launched by Alti Wine Exchange next week. It’s super cool and rare. I’m guessing you and I will probably make a lot of money out of it. Can you guess the region of this wine?
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