Anthony Hopkins as Burt Munro in The World's Fastest Indian

Hey folks – looking for something low-key to do this weekend?  Well, I have a couple of suggestions for you.  The first is a movie which is available right now through Netflix Instant.  It is a film based on the New Zealand speed racing motorcyclist Burt Munro.  Munro is played by Anthony Hopkins, who in my opinion does a fabulous job.  The film tells the tale of Munro’s quest to travel to the Bonneville Salt Flats and break the motorcycle land speed record with an engine under 1000 cc’s.  It is an impressive and heart-warming story.  A movie that I think appeals to a lot of people and is pretty difficult to dislike.  If you’re in the mood for a movie this weekend, definitely give this one some consideration.

Vina Peralillo's Arenal Carmenere

A second suggestion comes in a bottle.  Blogging about wine bothers me a little because I feel like such a snot, but I really try to do it in the least pretentious way possible.  And liking wine isn’t a crime – sometimes it just feels that way when you talk about it.  Anyways, moving on!  I was at my local wine shop last night and stumbled upon a grape that I had never heard of – Carmenere.

Chile is the big producer of this grape and it is very similar to Malbec.  I picked up Vina Peralillo’s Arenal and was blown away by how much I liked it.  If you are a Malbec fan, definitely scrounge around your LWS for some Carmenere – I think you’ll really enjoy it.

Anyways – that’s all I got for ya.  Have a great weekend everyone.

Sutton Cellar's Merlot

…and I am willing to venture a guess that you haven’t….still. Yes, even 5 years after one line in Sideways maligned the grape, Merlot sales are still lagging (up 2% in 2008 in comparison to Pinot Noir’s 16%).  I’m not gonna lie – I had not purchased a bottle of Merlot in years until a couple of months ago.  I bought another one the other evening and I’m here to say you should too.

Let me first say, I certainly do not consider myself a wine connoisseur nor do I have a palate that is distinctly defined.  I do enjoy it though and drink enough to have some sort of an informed opinion – nothing beyond that though!  Anyways, onto to the Merlot grape and the bottles I purchased.  The first bottle I purchased because it was from one of my favorite producers, Sutton Cellars.  I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Carl Sutton, like a few of my friends, but apparently he is quite an interesting guy…..and he makes fantastic wine.  So, when I saw this Sonoma County bottle by him, I grabbed it.  I was pleasantly surprised.

Paso Creek's Merlot

I hadn’t had a Merlot in a long time and thoroughly enjoyed the bottle.  Unfortunately, it was some time ago and I can’t give you a description of it, but I do remember enjoying it a lot.  The second Merlot was by Paso Creek, which is a producer I had not heard of before.  They are located in Paso Robles, which is part of the central coast wine growing region of California and is the southern most region.  It was definitely a BIG wine and had a plummy taste/smell to it that Merlot’s are known for.  This bottle reminded me a lot of a Cabernet Sauvignon, which isn’t surprising because the two are blended often.  I wasn’t eating a red meat at the time, but it would have gone very well with it.  Both of these bottles were around $14 range, which is a target price for me – I think you can find a lot of value in the $13 – $17 price range.  So there it is – my recent experiences with Merlot and I’m happy to say they’ve been good ones.  Next time you see a bottle – pick it up – I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Also, for fun – check out Wine Library TV’s Gary Vaynerchuk’s episode on this topic.