Wine On DVD – Believe It, Or Not

Written by Ian Robertson on 26th October 2008

Yep, finally happened. I was asked for my opinions on wine DVD’s.

Seriously though, aside from my first impression of “Really? Do people really want to watch TV about wine?” it makes sense. If you like wine, you will probably watch a TV show about it. So, here it is – Part One of my assessment of Wine On DVD.

First up is a single disc starring John Cleese, “Wine For The Confused.” Anyone who likes Cleese on the small screen will like him hosting a show about wine. Aimed at someone first starting the journey into wine, it is a fairly American based show that follows Cleese around Californian wineries as he examines topics like how to taste and assess, major grape varieties, wine and food matching and looking for bargains. Cleese is not in full comedic mode – there are no belly laughs here, but there is some nice information crammed into a single 80 minute show plus some extras. Mildly entertaining, but I cannot imagine that you will want to watch it over and over again. Hire it, don’t buy it.

Next up is Jancis Robinson, a world renowned wine journalist, critic and writer, presenting a series that aired in the UK in the mid nineties called ‘Jancis Robinson’s Wine Course.’ Probably my only criticism of this series is that it is a little old – there are certainly some trends in world wine that have advanced beyond the subject matter discussed in the shows. Nonetheless, this is one well put together series. Jancis is an excellent host, and if there is someone with more knowledge on wine in the world I would like to know who they are. She covers a vast amount of subjects easily without losing your interest, the show is shot beautifully, and even the soundtrack is pretty unobtrusive and well matched. It really is quite a relaxing thing to sit in front of – and it really makes you want to grab a glass of something to sip as you watch. Over 300 minutes of material, loosely split into grape varieties in each show. By the end you not only know the basics of tasting and assessing, but also the major grape varieties, how wine is made and some sightseeing from France to Chile via Australia and more. Great show, and this one is well worth owning.

Next time around I will delve into the SBS series “Wine Lover’s Guide To Australia” Series One and Two which are now available on DVD. I would write about these here, but I have honestly never watched them before so I need to get through them first!.