SOMM 3

"Somm" is the abbreviation" for Sommelier. "Somm 3" is the follow up to two previous documentaries: "Somm" and "Somm Into the Bottle." It is a brief history of the 1976 Judgement in Paris, thought up and executed by Steven Spurrier, comparing the best Bordeaux of the day against the best of the California Napa Valley boutique wineries, tasted blind. "Bottle Shock" is a movie that recreates the white wine Paris 1976 competition. The California wines finished on top of the heap, blind tasted by only French wine experts, in both the red and white categories. It eventually turned the wine world upside down. The setup for "Somm 3" was a blind tasting of pinot noirs from the around the world, judged by and setup by Dustin Wilson, a Master Sommelier, a restaurant and wine shop owner in NYC and blind tasted by the best wine experts in NYC. The results were surprising and eye opening to me. Then there is another pinot noir blind tasting in Paris with Jancis Robinson, Fred Dame (the Master of the Master Sommeliers in the US), and Steven Spurrier (who died recently). Plus a beginning segment where the three taste the bottles of wine which got them interested in wine. "Somm," "Somm Into the Bottle," and "Somm 3" comprise a worthy and interesting resource for non-expert wine enthusiasts.

I work in the wine industry in Santa Barbara County, and while I enjoyed most of it, the end absolutely ruined the film for me. In the film, it says that Bloom's Field Domaine de la Cote Pinot Noir, a wine that tied in ratings amongst Master Sommeliers, is sourced from "Santa Barbara" and then shows the winemaker in "Santa Rita Hills, Santa Barbara." It's not Santa Barbara. It's a whole hour North of Santa Barbara. It is actually in LOMPOC. Napa got put on the map, so can the Central Coast. People aren't familiar with Lompoc? Then they should have known after watching this. Instead of the producers giving credit where it is due, they lie because apparently it would be oh too embarrassing for them to say a Pinot Noir grapes sourced from Lompoc stood up to another Pinot Noir from Burgundy, France. Give me a break.