There have been a couple of videos about the wine business circulating recently. They both have used a site called xtranormal, which allows users to select a scene, type text, chose camera angles and music to make a short video.

If you have been dying to make your own wine “movie,” now is your chance! Whip up a short video (about a minute) and paste the link in the comments here by next Monday. Then we can vote from short list of finalists next week. Check out the above video for instructions!

Besides the heapings of glory, the top vote getter will win a copy of my book, A Year of Wine! So just when you thought you might get some work done after Labor Day, surf on over and get started at xtranormal.com. (Btw, I found that the editing only worked in the Safari browser.)

So Ross Schwartz told the assembled group at the Symposium for Professional Wine Writers in Napa last week. Schwartz, formerly an entertainment lawyer based in Los Angeles, wrote the screenplay for the movie Bottle Shock, which stars Alan Rickman and recently appeared on DVD. It loosely depicts the events of the Paris tasting of 1976 when a Chateau Montelena Chardonnay and a Stag’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon surprised the wine world by beating their French peers in a blind tasting. Schwartz elaborated on his goals for the screenplay, “When people walk out of the movie, I just want people to know who won the tasting and to want to buy a good bottle of wine.”

He said that he initially rebuffed the idea when his wife suggested writing a screenplay about the famous tasting, saying, “there’s nothing more boring than a wine tasting for people who aren’t tasting wine because it’s not a spectator sport! It’s not like Seabiscuit coming in–is he going to win at the end–or Rocky–is he going to get up? It’s a bunch of people swirling and spitting wine!” To make it work, he originally thought to frame it as a murder mystery in the vein of Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (IMDB) But ultimately he decided it should have the excitement of a sports movie and chose the Disney movie Cool Runnings as a model.

I caught up with him after his panel presentation and he told me that he has been collecting and consuming wine since 1976 when he went to college at UC Berkeley. He started researching the script in 2001 (well before Taber’s book was published, he pointed out) on “the Napa side” by talking to Jim and Bo Barrett of Chateau Montelena and their then-winemaker Mike Grgich. He also talked with Warren Winiarski of Stags Leap but in the end decided to focus on the Montelena side of the competition.

But after reading the script, Grigich asked to be removed. So instead of the winemaker-Bo Barrett rivalry, the producer and director decided to play up the father-son rivalry instead (the director and Jody Savin both also receive writing credits for the movie). Schwartz said that they also modified his screenplay in several ways, including cutting the mention of Winiarski’s wine to a mere mention in the final scroll at the end and moving the final tasting outdoors. He also said that the role for Patricia Gallagher, Spurrier’s assistant who went on the preliminary mission to California, was cut after Alan Rickman signed up for the film.

Schwartz said that the movie got into the Sundance film festival at a difficult time. Two years prior, in 2006, Little Miss Sunshine had been scooped up and rose to Oscar heights. Thus, he said, that movie houses bought too many films out of Sundance in 2007 and were stung, leaving them to only take four out of a hundred or so in 2008. Bottle Shock was not among them. So the producers decided to self-distribute, got it into 20 theaters for a national launch last August (eventually reaching 450), and it is now being shown extensively on airplanes.

As with the rival productions depicting Truman Capote’s life a few years ago, Bottle Shock was one of two movies being made about the famous Paris tasting. The other project bought the rights to George Taber’s book about the event, Judgment of Paris, signed on Robert Kamen as screenwriter, and today, has stalled. That project also had the support of Steven Spurrier who arranged the tasting in 1976 and today is a contributing editor to Decanter magazine. Schwartz claims he has a financial interest in the project.

Schwartz said that Decanter published stories about Bottle Shock that were “at least hype and certainly manipulative.” He pointed to this story that suggests actors “such as Jude Law and Hugh Grant” were in consideration. “They were trying to knock out our financing,” Schwartz said. “They didn’t even have a script!” He also pointed to their coverage of the movie after it debuted at Sundance.

“Their banner headline read ‘Bottle Shock opens to mixed reviews.’ Well, we got glowing reviews in Variety, Reporter, and Rolling Stone. There were some blogs that didn’t like us. They immediately went on to talk to some people who were running some blogs to say how terrible the movie was. But you can’t say when we got glowing reviews in the big papers that matter and some blogs found fault with it, you’re going to have a title that reads ‘opens to mixed reviews.’ And then not say that the senior editor has a stake in the other movie?” (For a roundup of reviews of the movie, check metacritic.com.)

Reached for comment, Adam Lechmere of Decanter said that the magazine’s relationship with Spurrier did not influence their coverage.

Reached for comment about his financial interest in the rival movie, Spurrier wrote via email that he sold his life rights to the Judgment of Paris project for $1,000. He elaborated, “I was an adviser to the project and was due to receive a fee if the movie had been made. As it was, these people walked away from the project over a year ago.” Finally, he added about Bottle Shock, “no doubt I shall have to watch it on my flight to Singapore next week, but at least it will be from the comfort of First Class, with a glass of Dom Perignon to ease the pain.”

Schwartz is devoting his energy to screenwriting and has written eight and sold one (Bottle Shock) but is optimistic that he will sell another script soon. He told me that a studio rejected one script of his because it was not expensive enough to make so he has written another that “can’t be made for less than $60 million.”

He also retains a handful of clients in his capacity as a lawyer, principally his father, Sherwood Schwartz, who created and produced Gilligan’s Island and Brady Bunch. He also represents the Beach Boys who are still touring 200 dates a year (who knew!) and he describes them as “recession-proof,” saying, “everybody wants to see the Beach Boys!”

According to Variety, the superb wine book now has writer/director David Koepp on board the movie version. With those action movies under his belt, the odds of a chase scene in the movie now stand at 2:1. The main question is whether they will be running with bottles of 1787 Lafitte in hand.

When I previously posted about the book, I wondered if they would amplify the tiny role that women occupy in the book. And even before that, we were speculating about casting decisions. Add your new thoughts if you have any!

As with the Capote movies and two movie versions of the Paris Tasting, there were at one point last year two productions happening around this juicy tale of bling and fraud. This version seems to be inching closer to becoming reality.

So I asked her whether she meant actually consuming wine or finding wine. She said both. So here’s what I said:

1. Spend a little extra on good stemware! You don’t have to break the bank since, undoubtedly, the glasses themselves will break at some point. But they can elevate modest wines and do fine wines the appropriate justice. Ravescroft has some good crystal stems starting at $10. And our house staple, as I’ve written before, is the Tritan Forte, which is “impact resistant” thanks to titanium infused in the lead-free crystal.

2. Find a good independent wine shop! You can read all you want about great sounding wines on blogs or in the paper but unless you can actually try the wines, your fun is severely limited. Work with an articulate member of the staff to find wines that you like.

You can read more about these suggestions–and more!–in my new book A Year of Wine: Perfect Pairing, Great Buys, and What to Sip for Each Season. If Cara asked you for your top two general wine tips, what would you tell her?

Also, the first segment I did on Fox Business over the holidays has just unearthed from the great video vault somewhere (although the poor audio and video quality makes it look like I was in a witness relocation program). “Enjoy!”

Well, wine geeks in Vancouver know how to go to the movies. (And I’m talking about Vancouver, Washington, not that other eno-gastro-hub further north). The Cinetopia offers a wall of Enomatic machines, those self-service wine machines that dispense one ounce at a time after a swipe of your card. Over 100 “world class” choices are there for your tasting prior to the movie in one ounce pours.

And if you feel a little parched during the show, bring your wine in and there’s a waiter who can serve you food during the film! For more details, check out the promotional video. And tell me which wine you’d have with popcorn. I’d opt for Champagne.

A columnist on MSNBC later reported on other reporting, looking for a motive:

“David feels like Victoria needs something to do other than shopping and going to parties,” a source told Full Disclosure. “He is hoping she will get into the wine business and settle into some kind of regular routine.”

Ouch! SFLuxe.com throws cold water on the idea of their buying a property, instead suggesting they bought into The Napa Valley Reserve. A $150,000 deposit buys the right to purchase wine, from a half a barrel to three barrels. Members can be as involved as they like, picking grapes off the vine (in stilettos?) or punching down the cap.

What should be the name of their wine? The Sun suggested Chateau Posh, describing it as thin bodied.

If they do buy a winery, they would be the latest celebrities to buy one. Brangelina recently signed a long-term rental in Provence and Johnny Depp bought Venssa Paradis a vineyard there as well.

A reader writes in: “I’m flipping through the channels and “The Jerk” (Steve Martin) is on… and there’s a scene with him pulling wine from dispensers. Lafite 66!”

Funny image indeed! (Note wine glass in top left corner.) Hit the comments with your caption!

Excellent news! THIS is the wine movie we have been waiting for! Forget Paris 1976. Forget Russell Crowe. This has it all–intrigue, fine wine, possible duplicity, remorse, vengeance, and bling! The only thing missing is the love angle but I’m sure Hollywood’s finest screenwriters will be able to work that in when they get off the picket line.

So let’s do our own casting call. I outlined some of the characters in an earlier summary of the story. Will Smith is reportedly involved.

Potentially fraudulent seller, with a hidden past: Paul Giamatti. Back for another wine role! No, wait, Johnny Depp!

Potentially complicit, eager auctioneer: Ian McKellan. Or take it down a few decades with Hugh Grant.

Flashback to Thomas Jefferson: Nick Nolte! Back again, and with wine…

Hired detective: Chris Cooper

Billionaire sheriff: Clint Eastwood. No doubt. But this is probably the part that Will Smith wants. That could be fun too.

Love interest: Catherine Zeta-Jones. Could merge my previous suggestion about the wine heist quite easily here.

And major congrats to renaissance man Ben Wallace (er, wait, this Ben Wallace) on selling the movie rights before the book has even been published! And to Patrick Radden Keefe for selling movie rights to a magazine article! I’m happy to sell movie rights to a blog posting.

SPIT: Blind tastings
Eric Asimov writes “maybe as wine drinkers we’re all a little more grown up now and don’t need to taste blind all the time.” Indeed! Three cheers wine evaluation without numbers! [The Pour]

SIPPED: Gringo vino
Are Americans finally heading to Argentina to make wine? Fortune Small Business found a few. I hope they read my article from January about the pitfalls! [Fortune SB]

SIPPED: Bambino vino
Gabriella writes up her experience taking 55 elementary school kids on a winery tour in Spain. Could this ever take place if it were in America? [Catavino]

SIPPED: green wine
Whole Foods rolls out an “organically grown” wine in a tetra prisma! [Seattle dbusiness]

SIPPED: merlot
The grape, spit in Sideways, will get it’s own defense on the silver screen with a new documentary. Key question: will anyone notice?

SPIT: The greenback
The US dollar falls to 15 year lows. Say hello to more expensive imported wine–and wine travel overseas!

(Photo credit: Fair use is made here of a reduced-size crop from a larger image in Business 2.0 attributed to Michael Kelley)

Does it sound like there’s the makings of a full-length feature film in there to you? Quite frankly, I fail to see how there’s enough material in the event for movie–it’s a critical event, sure, but one moment in a larger, more interesting story about wine, wine consumption, and wine production.

But that must be why I am not a Hollywood executive since there are currently two separate–and rival!–productions to portray these events on the silver screen. One version, “Bottle Shock,” supposedly begins shooting next week with Alan Rickman as Steven Spurrier, the Englishman who organized the original tasting. Danny DeVito will play Mike Grgich, the Croatian immigrant who made the winning chardonnay and is also know for effectively pulling off a beret. Yes, this means DeVito will be filmed wearing a beret! (I think he can pull it off.) And with the endorsement of Grgich and Jim Barrett, owner of Chateau Montelena, since they favor this version of the events.

Another production, “The Judgment of Paris,” has Spurrier’s official endorsement as well as that of George Taber, the author of the book of that name based on his reporting for TIME magazine (originally a four paragraph story). They’re still looking for a lead, with Hugh Grant and Jude Law “rumored.” (No word on who will wear the beret in this version) And now various parties associated with this film are threatening to sue “Bottle Shock.”

Thirty years later, the tasting still generates controversy. But in this case, the box office will be the final arbiter. If they don’t both flop, that is.

“Films at war over fall of French wine” [Sunday Telegraph]
Judgment of Paris, George Taber
Emperor of Wine, Elin McCoy

Anyway, now starts the branding of sidelines and related merchandise. According to this Reuters story, this lineup will include a wine:

For the first time, Disney will offer red and white wines to compliment the film’s backdrop, a five-star Parisian restaurant, as well as cheese platters, both from Costco Wholesale Corp.

Another story elaborates that “The chardonnay, from the Burgundy region in France and bearing the Ratatouille name and likeness, will sell for $12.99.”

No details about the producer or the importer. While I’ve heard of celebrity endorsed wines, I’ve never before heard of a wine sold on the strength of an animated rodent. Consider it a celebrity/critter label.

Parody becomes prophecy
On April Fools Day I posted a spoof about a new wine bar that serves wines based on point scores including a flight in two ounce glasses. Shockingly, a commenter pointed out that one such points-based wine bar already exist in California! Now there’s news that Sauvignon Republic, a brand that sources sauvignon blanc from three continents, is offering on-premises establishments two-ounce shooters for their flights. Eegad! Next year I’ll have to be much more outrageous.

Distiller-in-chief
While Thomas Jefferson had a love for fruits of the vine, it turns out that his predecessor and Father Of Our Nation, preferred the grains of the plains, specifically, rye. Lost among the stories of chopping down a cherry tree and wooden teeth is the fact that George Washington was also the biggest distiller of his day. Now $21 million reconstruction (paid for funded in large part by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and the Wine and Spirit Wholesalers of America) at his home in Mount Vernon offers visitors the chance to see steps in the distillation process–and even buy a bottle of the “ardent spirit” at the gift shop. [Courier-Journal]

Wrap it up
Wine corked? Try cling wrap. Crinkle and put in carafe. Pour wine in. Shake. Voila! No cork taint. But mmm, love that cling wrap flava! [LA Times]

Jay-Z holds an Ace
Jay-Z makes Page Six today. Not news for us. But what is news is that the gossip hounds say the Cherry Coke and Budweiser pitchman is getting throw some more bubbly in the mix by formalizing an ownership stake in Armand de Brignac, aka Ace of Spades. The champagne brand was cooked up last summer. Page Six reports that 100 cases of the bubbly has gone missing from a Florida warehouse. But for those willing to pay, it is now available from select retailers for $300 and up (find ace of spades). [NY Post]

Wine that loves…food
A new line of “wine that loves” certain types of food is to be launched in coming months. Cute label images tell drinkers which food to drink it with starting with three popular meals–roasted chicken, pasta, and pizza. No word on whether the back label reveals trivial details such as the grape variety, region, or vintage. And what if I like pinot noir with my salmon but their “salmon” wine is a chardonnay? Or if I like the pizza wine with my pasta? Eegad. Insurrection! [BusinessWeek]

Bluffing wine
A waiter from Chanterelle in Tribeca tells NY mag how one of his diners didn’t drink wine but wanted to look as if he were drinking wine in front of the rest of the party. So the waiter substituted ginger ale for champagne and pretended to spill water in the red wine glass returning with organic grape juice in the wine glass. Very odd. Didn’t anyone at the table wonder why he was pounding the “wine”? [Grub Street]

Related:
“Jay-Z puts an Ace in play” [Dr. V]
“Reader mailbag: finding Ace of Spades champagne” [Dr. V]

Then in late December, the “big wine caper” took place in the well-heeled enclave of Atherton, California. Thieves cracked the electronic code and stole 450 super-premium bottles of wine. The New York Times wrote that “There was no sign of forced entry, indicating the possibility of an inside job…The perpetrator had a discerning palate, leaving behind lesser vintages. The average bottle stolen was reported to be worth $222.”

Now news is coming out of Bordeaux of yet another heist. “Over €600,000 of first growth and other top Bordeaux wines have been stolen from one of France’s oldest negociant houses in a heist which bears all the hallmarks of an inside job,” reports decanter.com.

Wow, international intrigue, precious wine, savvy thieves–someone had better alert a screen writer and Catherine Zeta-Jones! THIS is the wine screenplay they have been waiting for! (Sorry, Russell Crowe)

tags: wine | wine collecting