When Wine Is the Star

We wrote a chapter about wine and movies for our book "Wine for Every Day and Every Occasion" and, as a result, watched far too many bad movies in which wine played a role. In that category, we'd put "Year of the Comet," "A Walk in the Clouds" and "Blood and Wine" (with Jack Nicholson), in which Opus One plays a minor part. Wine has a charming role in "French Kiss," a Kevin Kline-Meg Ryan movie. Wine is an essential element in the Hitchcock classic "Notorious" (so central, in fact, that Hitchcock is drinking a glass of bubbly in his cameo), and that's a good excuse to watch that movie again. And we should certainly mention that wine is a central element in the remake of "The Parent Trap," in which Natasha Richardson made such an impression on our daughters as the perfect mother that they felt they'd lost someone close when she died.

Mysteries of Winery Pricing
I've been to a number of wineries in New York and California and I've never understood why the prices there are as high (or higher) than in stores. It makes no (economic) sense. At least in New York, it's my understanding that for the wine to go from the winery to me requires two middlemen: the distributor and the retailer. It seems like buying wine at the winery should be a win-win proposition, when, in fact, it's a no-win situation for me and a huge-win situation for the winery.

—Robert G. Nassau, Syracuse University College of Law, Syracuse, N.Y.
Years ago, we asked someone at a tasting room the same question and he told us the answer was simple: The wineries didn't want to undercut their own partners -- the distributors and retailers of their wines. It's also clearly true that wineries enjoy those fatter profit margins, which is one reason they're constantly building bigger and fancier tasting rooms. In addition, we'd guess that, in some places, various laws come into play. We sent this question to wine industry representatives in both New York and California. A spokeswoman for the California-based Wine Institute said simply: "The wineries do not want to undercut their partners. However, wineries often offer discounts on volume buys in the tasting room or to wine club members, and there are also wines that are only sold at the winery." Jim Trezise, president of the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, said: "It used to be that there were laws governing pricing, but those are now gone, so both the wineries and retailers (and restaurants) may charge what they want. Generally speaking, wineries do avoid undercutting their retail customers just as a matter of good politics."

Out of the Merlot Closet
I have just finished your article on Merlot and now can come out of the closet, where I have been drinking some Merlot for the last six to 12 months. I thought there was something wrong with my taste buds since I also discovered that some of the latest Merlot was actually good drinking with or without food. I was thinking of getting a tongue transplant in the event my taste buds had some disease. Thank goodness I can now drink them in the light.

—David Balke, Mobile, Ala.