Best Wine Movies

This is a list of the best wine movies produced.  These movies are centered around the topic of wine and all should be available for rental, streaming, or purchasing. Each of these wine movies is enjoyed best when sipping a tasty glass of wine.

A list of the best wine movies

This is a list of our best movies that involve wine in the main theme of the movie. We list the movies in the order of favorites

1. Sideways – 2004

The first movie on our list of best wine movies is “Sideways.” It is my favorite wine movie. I own the DVD and watch it about once a year. This is a crazy movie about two misfits who take off on a male-bonding trip to the Santa Barbara wine country. Miles takes Jack on a last hurrah before Jack is to be married. Miles is a wine aficionado, and Jack quite the opposite. This is the movie that brought Pinot Noir to new heights in the world of California wines. The movie had such an influence that Pinot Noir sales took off. Just the opposite was the effect on Merlot. Miles slammed Merlot with one sentence, “I am not drinking any F&#%!@?! Merlot!” Check out our Sideways Wine Trail. It features all the Santa Barbara wineries that were featured in the movie “Sideways.”

2. A Walk in the Clouds – 1995

This movie takes place in the Napa Valley and stars Keanu Reeves. Many of the winery vineyard scenes were shot at the Mount Veeder Winery and the Mayacamus Winery. Keanu Reeves is a soldier returning to his wife after four years of service in World War II. He meets a wonderful woman on the bus and it turns out her family owns a winery in the Napa Valley, a Mexican-owned winery at that. There many wonderful wine scenes. In one scene, the entire family awakes to fight the frost. The harvest scene is a classic! Another great character in the movie is the patriarch of the family, played by Anthony Quinn, an all around classy and lovable character. I am not sure why this movie does not get more recognition from the wine buffs. It is very enjoyable.

3. Bottle Shock – 2010

This is a movie based loosely on the famous wine tasting in Paris in 1976. In a blind tasting, a California Chardonnay (Chateau Montelena 1973) and a California Cabernet Sauvignon (Stags Leap Wine Cellars 1973) took top honors in a blind tasting over French wines. In “Bottle Shock,” the movie centers on the saga of Chateau Montelena and owner Jim Barrett as he struggles to make and sell his wine. There is a lot of fiction in this movie but it is very entertaining. Sadly, there is no mention of Mike Grgich who was the winemaker at Chateau Montelena at the time. One interesting point is that Freddy Rodriquez, who plays the part of Gustavo Brambila in “Bottle Shock,” also plays one of the family members in “A Walk in the Clouds.”

4. You Will Be My Son – 2013

This film takes place in St. Emilion and is the story of an estate owner who is not happy that his son will eventually inherit his estate and run the winery. He does not think his son has the skill to carry on the quality of his wines. As you learn later in the movie, there is a deeper reason why he feels this way about his son. The movie takes quite a turn with a surprise ending. We love the scenes in the old wine cellar, digging through the wines and finding many treasures. The movie is in French with English sub-titles.

5. A Good Year – 2006

This is feel good wine movie about an English man (Russell Crow) who inherits an old winery and vineyard from his uncle. It is not what he expects but all ends well when he falls for a beautiful woman as he works on the winery restoration. The movie is set in Provence.

6. Somm – 2012

This is a documentary following four men preparing for the hardest test in the world, the Master of Wine Sommelier. I love the cinematography in this movie. We see vineyards, barrels, wine, wine glasses, and close-ups of each of the sommelier candidates. It is very artistic. I think you have to love wine to really enjoy this movie.

Uncorked

The wine movie Uncorked in new on Netflix. The character Elijah played by Mamoudou Athie, is torn between studying to become a Master Sommelier or taking over the family barbecue joint. There are some fantastic wine scenes in the movie. It is funny, moving, and very entertaining.

I know we missed a few. Please offer your suggestions.