Who's Who ?

(..) This movie is totally manicheist and this drives out its primary message. I can't help myself but to raise a number of serious questions about the film. For example, should Mr Aimé Guibert be considered as the man who created, literally out of nothing, the Daumas-Gassac wines, one of the best Cru from the Languedoc-Roussillon region ? Or more as a businessman who sold millions of bottles under the label "Moulin de Gassac" regrouping 7,000 plots and 800 local growers ? (Re: Daumas-Gassac's web site) (..) Guibert, a now retired wealthy industrial manufacturer, wants to give lessons to other businessmen, who at some point were just a bit more mischievous than him. Why does the film not mention the fact that Guibert initially wanted to sell his property to the Mondavi's, but finally decided to keep it because they couldn't agree on its price? He engaged this "terroir" battle only after they expressed the intention to purchase some land opposite to his property. (..)

About the Sardinian grower, do one wonders where he has learned to charm and speak so well to the camera? Have these sensible and poetic words, which of course one can only approve, really come out so spontaneously, just in one catch and under the perfect sunlight? Couldn't have they been written and repeated in advance? Well in fact, the man hasn't lived all his life in the vineyards, generously offering Malvoisie wine to visiting tourists as required by the local folklore.
Also, Mr Hubert de Montille, an old veteran who probably missed a brilliant actor's career, why doesn't the film mention that he's a retired lawyer and President of the Bar? On which side is de Montille when he constantly criticizes his son, which however he intronized at the head of the family's property? And about his daughter's disgust to the Boisset Group: shouldn't the blame be rather put on the Burgundian producers who, after decades of producing very questionable wines, or for the purpose of capitalizaing money, have sold in hardly 30 years the major part of Burgundy's vineyards to an ambitious wine trader? (..) At least, Boisset has a coherent speech by saying that his primary goal is to make business. I am not sure though that all the wines produced by the Boisset Group, which I agree, never left me imperishable emotions, are fatally worse than the ones made by many small independent vine growers in Burgundy. (..)

Globalizers are not that bad

About Robert Parker, I admit not to understand Nossiter's hate and contempt to the famous wine critic. (..) Parker's record is to have scored top wines according to HIS taste - an American taste thus despicable by essence. To Nossiter, he is guity for judging them all at scratch, trying not to be influenced by any old tradition or classification. But isn't there any more Republican approach than this one? Of course, Nossiter laughs to all the wine growers who, thanks to Parker, now manage to export to growing international markets. Or to all the amateurs who discovered, without any a priori, all the beautiful wines of the Rhone Valley, of unknown Italian regions, of Spain's Priorat or other areas nobody ever spoke of before Parker. But what does one really reproach to the critic? To have a different taste and opinion than the old caciques of the wine industry, who, because of his success, have lost all influence today. And finally, who has the will to spend 200 days in the vineyards every year to confront his ideas? Not that many critics I'm afraid. By the way, I don't know Parker at all. I only met him once for 20 seconds and he never scored my wines.

Michel Rolland is shown in the film as an arrogant plain-spoken man. But it is easy to film someone for one whole day and to keep only a few seconds at the editing. (..) Anyway in France, someone who has succeeded in his business and generates money from his activity is considered as a go-getter, only capable to create jobs, to pay taxes and bring back foreign currencies to the country. 

Apart from two or three cases in the film that are not justifiable, almost every scene is prone to contrary interpretation when the remainder of the situation is known. Because finally, despite Mr Nossiter's efforts, nothing is totally white, nor totally black. More specifically, the wine industry is mainly composed of thousands of little properties and companies who, without the help of Mr Parker's scores, manage to convince their potential clients to spend their money on a wine that, simply said, provides a lot of pleasure. But are they only mentioned once in the film? (..)

Let's rather unite for better wines

Finally, I believe that by opposing the good guys to the bad guys, the philosophers to the industrialists, the large groups to the small producers leads to a totally counterproductive situation. This approach does in any way support the cause for wine. (..) It is not by fighting between us that we will gain any war. Or one will only build on battle fields.

Sincerely - Hervé Bizeul

NB: Inter-titles are from Winemega.com

TOP

BACK TO THE MAIN ARTICLE