Somm: Into the Bottle

A few days ago I watched Netflix's sequel to the popular Somm movie. The follow-up, called Somm: Into the Bottle, focuses a little bit more on winemaking and other aspects of the wine business besides tasting and the Master Sommelier credential. A few of my favorite parts involved food pairing, value wines, and high-end wines.

Food Pairing

• The master sommeliers report that "what grows together, goes together." A few of their pairings:
• Muscadet & oysters
• Chianti & lamb
• Gewurtztraminer & sausage
• Sauternes & foie gras
• Syrah & Indian
• Chardonnay & popcorn
• Champagne is generally food friendly

Value Wines

• Sommeliers generally seem to like riesling
• Beaujolais wines are considered high value right now. This wine region, just south of Burgundy in France, makes wines largely from the Gamay grape which has a thin skin and is low in tannins.
• One suggested food pairing for Beaujolais was a hot dog (interesting)

High-End Wines

• Lafite-Rothschild, from last week's case, was mentioned
• It seems that DRC wine is considered even more "exclusive" than Rothschild -- they produce primarily in Burgundy (vs. Bordeaux) and in much smaller quantities than Rothschild. Their bottles can sell for several thousand dollars
• It's interesting to consider DRC as a different strategic play than Rothschild. Rather than branch out geographically or expand production, they've elected to remain small -- and command an even larger price premium than Rothschild as a result.
• This article suggests that Lafite Rothschild produces 20,000 cases of wine annually, compared to 450 cases for DRC.