I’m really not sure how much interest this movie will have to a wider audience. That said, my sixteen-year-old son enjoyed watching it with me, especially when he spotted Jim Clendenon, whom my son goes to school with 
A very small percentage of people I’ve blind tasted with are amazingly good at it. A subset of them have vast experience in specific areas and have a very good rate of calling vintage, producer and vineyard. In other words, the right person who has tasted dozens of vintages of a wine many times each could be fairly reliable to call a specific wine like that a fake.
A very small percentage of people I’ve blind tasted with are amazingly good at it. A subset of them have vast experience in specific areas and have a very good rate of calling vintage, producer and vineyard. In other words, the right person who has tasted dozens of vintages of a wine many times each could be fairly reliable to call a specific wine like that a fake.
Exactly. It’s pattern recognition, just like it is visually when you recognize your car or your friends. The problem is that most people just won’t have that much experience with multiple bottles of the same very rare and old wines. And those who might have are also prey to the same problems mentioned above - Broadbent and the Jefferson bottles for example.
Great film and such fun to see footage of all the things we read about in Don’s amazing account here. Loved Ponsot and definitely wanted more Don who is much handsomer than his avatar!
It was Don’s thread, thanks to a mention from Mel Hill, that led me to WB … such a fascinating story and I’m so glad it led me here … and to all the great - and non-counterfeit wines I now enjoy.
My 17 yr old son wandered in early in the movie and was hooked, so that says something about the appeal outside this demi-monde. He thought Laurent Ponsot was “savage” and “OG” (which is high praise.)
Very well done.Why is Kapon not in the same cell as Rudy? Ponsot is the man!
Well done. I was surprised at how much video they had of Rudy going back. Best audio clip was where he said at an auction that he wished you could refill the bottles and put the corks back in the bottles. Also, when asked if he came from a wealthy family that he was broke and took advantage of people. Can’t remember the exact words.
Good work by Maureen and Don.
Agree with Nancy and Mike. Very good. Surprised by the production quality, even old footage.
That fact that his two uncles have stolen about $700M combined kinds of says it all.
Jef Levy doesn’t come across that well…
Just saw the movie and agree that it was very well done. It can’t have been easy to do a movie that non wine people will understand but more than enough meat to appeal to Berserkers.
Look at all the effort it took to convict Rudy. It was pretty common knowledge that way before the Ponsot auction, there was something seriously fishy going on. But look what it took; a billionaire with a bottomless checkbook and full time staff on the case, a French winemaker, a lawyer who decided to alert us for the Spectrum auction, and finally despite being warned, Rudy’s own stupidity.
Not sure why Kapon was not indicted, he probably should have been.
I think the interesting part was not that Levy and another friend/victim spoke out and came across as naive. I remember late in the movie, the look of utter betrayal and yet, they still tried to talk their way round it.
I also loved Jay McInernay talking about getting sloshed at the auctions back in the day.