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Meet Christopher Sawyer - the world’s only film sommelier.
Popcorn and soda...? Forget about it!
Each year, as our Official Film Festival Sommelier,
Christopher selects the Sonoma Valley region’s finest wines for
exclusive tastings with delectable local cuisine at every screening
during the Sonoma Valley Film Festival.
Sonoma Valley Film Festival favorite films...
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FILM  | WINE  |
There is a purity of spirit and heart in Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing & Charm School that hearkens back to a simpler, more straightforward place, a place that draws from emotional memories of growing up, with its scars and lost dreams.
| Viansa Winery’s Arneis, a nicely balanced dry white wine featuring distinctive, memory-inducing aromas of honey and flowers. For the red option Viansa Winery’s Friesa is a distinctive fruit-driven wine that sweeps us back to a simpler time, to the flavors of old world Grenache, but with original roots in Northern Italy.
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FILM | WINE |
The Bituminous Coal Queens of Pennsylvania The Bituminous Coal Queens of Pennsylvania documents the odyssey of Hollywood actress Sarah Rush back to her roots as a 16-year-old pageant winner, in the town of Carmichaels (population 556) in Southwestern, PA, a far cry from Hollywood. Filled with colorful local characters, this sometimes humorous look at small town America, where coal mining is a way of life that instills a strength and pride in its citizens, captures the spirit of the community during the 50th Anniversary celebrations of the Coal Queen Pageant and the King Coal Festival in August of 2003.
| Gundlach Bundschu 2004 Gewurztraminer, Estate, Rhinefarm Vineyard, Sonoma Valley Gundlach Bundschu 2003 Pinot Noir, Estate, Rhinefarm Vineyard, Sonoma Valley Notes: “Coals Queens” calls for a lovely white wine and a red wine with a surprising complexity.
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FILM | WINE |
Dance with the Devil The Toledo show has developed a cult following among the Hollywood elite who crowd into the cozy confines of Harvelle’s, a small club in L.A. to experience, first hand, the blistering eroticism of the dancers, fishnet clad dames in stiletto heels, who pulsate and gyrate against the band, the Kats, who blow mean riffs on the sax while driving the beat on bass and drums. All the while, gravel-voiced Toledo, brim of his fedora eclipsing his eyes, presides over it all like a maestro conducting a masterpiece.
| Ravenswood 2004 Zinfandel, Zen & Zin Z Blend, California Ravenswood 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Pickberry Vineyard, Sonoma Mountain Notes: Once again, back to the theme of this movie that revolves around the fiery, passionate side of dancing; think of Flashdance set in urban L.A. Snappy zinfandel counterbalanced by a great example of a seductive Bordeaux-style Cabernet Sauvignon makes for an excellent balance. |
FILM | WINE |
A Year On Earth Infuse The Amazing Race with the activist mission of Greenpeace aimed at the MTV demographic and you get A Year On Earth, the chronicle of three American teenagers on a global environmental research expedition with a single mission: take the pulse of the planet and report back to their generation what on Earth is going on. Globe-trotting from Africa and Latin America to Asia and beyond, A Year On Earth contains images of resounding natural beauty, educating the youth of today about their covenant to protect the planet for future generations.
| Gundlach Bundschu 2003 Chardonnay, Sangiacamo Ranch, Sonoma Valley Gundlach Bundschu 2003 Pinot Noir, Estate, Rhinefarm Vineyard, Sonoma Valley Notes: Intelligent, deep, dense film filled with beauty, passion and the continued pursuit of knowledge. Fits great with two regional specialty wines from vineyard designates.
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