It is very ironic that Miles railed against Merlot because Chateau Cheval Blanc always has a large percentage of Merlot which is THE celebrated grape in Saint-Emillion now and then. There’s even some anecdotal evidence that the 1961 Cheval Blanc was 100% Merlot like arguably the greatest Merlot based wine in the world-Chateau Petrus.
After Sideways was released, I remember how Pinot Noir went from an affordable domestically produced wine to seeing the prices rise considerably and distinctly remember Merlot vines being replanted but in the post regarding Bottle Shock, someone made a startling comment about insiders rejecting Merlot but I don’t remember anything in the industry about “insiders and snobs that Merlot was lame” especially because many of us insiders love Bordeaux right bank wines where Merlot has always reigned supreme even when Sideways came out.
I reached out Chateau Cheval Blanc regarding the blend in 1961 but they responded they do not have that information.
1) Anyone have access to grape production data from Bordeaux RIGHT BANK for 1961?
2) I’ve never seen the irony of why Ch Cheval Blanc was used in Sideways despite the fact that it celebrates the Merlot grape. Anyone read why this was used as a dramatic device or just a coincidence?
3) Anyone else hear that Ch Cheval Blanc was 100% Merlot in 1961?
by TurkeyRunWoods
14 Comments
Miles railed against Merlot because it was his ex-wife’s favorite grape, and he hated to be reminded of that when he drank Merlot. It had nothing to do with the grape. It was his personal relationship with someone.
I think it has to do with having tons of it with his wife no? and then he doesn’t want to have it anymore as it reminds him of her
Would’ve love to see the guy take a shot of Petrus and then spit it out.
Did you…did you watch the movie…?
The Chateau is lying. They have the info. They just don’t want to tell you.
For Miles it was about his wife.
For the general public Merlot had become the standard red wine and a crowd pleaser. The movie gave permission to many to be critical about it, some of that was good and some was bad.
I’m thinking we’ll see a resurgence in Merlot via Bordeaux, but unsure we’ll see it in California.
It’s never about the Merlot…
His favorite wine is Merlot too…thus the Cheval Blanc. It’s just the same denial that leads him to hold the woman who he cheated on responsible for the end of their relationship. Miles is a complex character, fully flawed in all the normal ways.
His prize possession is a 1961 Cheval Blanc (merlot) which undoubtedly was purchased during his marriage to celebrate some future event. You see him drinking it after he leaves the wedding out of a styrofoam cup at a burger joint. It was a well written movie.
Clarification: a supposed wine geek like Miles had to have known that Ch Cheval Blanc has significant amounts of Merlot.
I understand about his wife but why intentionally make Miles look like he didn’t know?
The irony was that Miles said Cabernet Franc would never make a great wine, he called it hollow. Cheval Blanc has a high percentage of Cabernet Franc.
I always always had a feeling he was referring to 100% California Merlot, not necessarily French Bordeaux blended Merlot wines.
When Miles is asked about why he likes Pinot Noir he gives an answer that describes himself. He was never talking about Pinot Noir; rather, he was only talking about his own characteristics.
Miles is a consistently selfish, self absorbed, pretentious character up until the point in the film when Jack hits on the waitress at the cheap steakhouse. It’s at that point when he starts to change his ways. Before then, he’s just a lonely loser who cheated on his wife and steals cash from his mother.
Hilariously, I saw Paul Giamatti on IG talking about how he knows nothing about wine and that they used Merlot because they thought it was the funniest sounding for the line.