Oscar Libations

I struggle with Oscar pairings, seeing as the topics of the top films skew towards seriously serious and I get worried that making them “fun” detracts. And yet, the best films have a spirit that…deserves a spirit, whether tragic or hilarious, whimsical or celebratory. In addition to choice libations, I’m sharing some of my opinions on this year’s fêted movies. Thanks to Letterboxd and my theatre studies background, I am beginning to fancy myself a film critic in addition to a wine one. Not that I’m so much a wine critic—more like a red/white/pink/orange color commentator. In NO particular order, except I saved my very top three for the end: -- PAST LIVES + SOJU FROM THE STATES I want to include a fourth in the top three as this was a favorite of the year, and I see a LOT of movies. It is potent. A young girl’s family immigrates to Canada; then, as an adult, she goes to New York. She reconnects with her preteen sweetheart from South Korea. She also acquires a husband. What are these decisions we make in life? Sliding door questions like this are real conundrums that can paralyze you if you let them. Watching Greta Lee’s perfectly played Nora navigate them will quietly floor you. Soju is a distilled beverage from Korea, traditionally made of rice, but now it can be made of other things, too. In homage to the Korea-United States crossover, I picked a soju aperitif made with Finger Lakes grapes! Yobo Kish Earth Soju Aperitif I picked this much like I elected to watch Past Lives for the first time. Well, I wasn’t on a plane back from Italy, but I was intrigued by the names of both and did not know what to expect. This soju, it turns out, is umami-laced! It truly is earthy and gives smoky vibes. If in a blind tasting, for a minute, I might wonder if this was a really elegant Scotch until putting it on the palate and realizing that at 21% abv, it is much subtler. There’s a floral vanilla note that hits mid-palate and carries through to the end. As beautifully haunting as the film. -- THE HOLDOVERS + WHISKY What a delicious film of alienized individuals forced to come together in a cold winter. As for things imbibed, it is all about the warming whisky that Paul Giamatti and Da’Vine Joy Randolph share more than once. “You know this is a necessity,” she says, grabbing a mug. He nods in solidarity. Something warming to get you through the winter. Later on, Jim Beam is cited. But then, in a Christmas dinner scene, Old Forester is the pick, so I went with that. I went with the cheapest I could find (still not like, CHEAP cheap) given these two, as teachers and cooks likely don’t have an extravagant budget (and as a writer, samesies). I adored this movie. Alexander Payne has a deft hand when quilting together characters’ trauma with the world around them in a way that reveals something about yourself to you. Watch with whisky; let the goodness flow through you. Old Forester 100 Proof Kentucky Straight Rye Whisky Not fancy, but it brings that level of comfort and, let’s face it, has a bit of complexity, and being 100% proof will warm the heck out of your chilly end-of-winter body. The nose brings golden syrup and a pleasant playdough note with a pinch of allspice and orange peel. The palate is smooth and surprisingly light-bodied upfront but finishes mouth-coating. Spicier and vanilla-y too. Let it be a not-so-guilty pleasure. -- ANATOMY OF A FALL + ENGLISH BUBBLES Okay, okay! I haven’t seen it. When I embarked on this article the film was out of theatres and not yet streaming on anything I subscribe to, and not given to me as a SAG-AFTRA screener. Moreover, it is 2 hours and 31 minutes, making it no Killers of the Flower Moon, but that’s still really long. So forgive me for that. I’ll give you a bonus film I DID watch that I thought deserved more noms at the end to compensate for my lack of critical analysis. In the meantime, it’s French, but given that I didn’t watch it, I’m choosing some nonsensical bubbles that tilt at being French that I happened to be drinking while working on this. I am so sorry. I am only human (ish). Hattingly Valley Classic Reserve Brut Surprisingly rich for a cool climate wine! This Pinot/Chardonnay blend is golden and smells of browned apple, sweet white loaf bread, and a hint of browned sugar, and the palate brings all that, lifted by delicate bubbles and a zing of citrus fruit (lemons and tangerines, I believe) acidity. Quite beguiling, it unfolds more and more nuance with time, so give it that. -- KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON + ESPRESSO You need the caffeine as it is a long movie, but also, you can’t be downing a venti nitro cold brew because there is no intermission to this three-hour twenty-six-minute masterpiece. You need as much caffeine as you can pack into a tiny amount of fluid. This movie blew me away in a way I did not expect. I will say it took me about two hours to get into it, and then I was riveted. Also a contender for best film and goddess, yes, let’s see Lily Gladstone get that Best Actress award. The story is real, and tragic, and it is bananas (or unfortunately inevitable) that it took a famous white guy to make us pay attention, but I’m glad he did so…thank you Scorsese? Grab that espresso and hunker down; you are in for a ride. -- ZONE OF INTEREST + I WANTED TO START SMOKING AGAIN + HARD ALCOHOL Okay, clearly, a lot of critics disagree with me. It got a best pic nom. I guess I shouldn’t give too much up plot-wise, but at the same time, a) you might want to know what you are getting into, and b) there is no real storyline here. It’s a lot of a Nazi’s family doing mundane things in their idyllic house and garden, which lies just over the wall from Auschwitz. You never see the brutality of the camp, but the soundscape is a constant eerie buzz punctuated by the occasional screams and gunshots. Effective? Yes. That is true. It’s treacherous to hear. But what you WATCH is mundane on purpose. And in fact, the film’s point has something to do with the banality of evil – how humans can come to be desensitized from the horror and suffering of others as they nurture their own desires. I understood what this film was doing, but this one was pretentious AF—it starts with literally three minutes of black screen. And there’s a five-minute scene (okay, maybe not quite that long, but long enough that you think it’s going somewhere) of a character locking the doors at night. I like art. And arty films. Often. But this one, I felt moved past being art and into self-indulgent, BUT I AM MAKING ARRRRRT territory. Like I said, I’m not saying my opinion is correct, and lordess knows we should never forget the horrors of the Holocaust. But I could name more than a handful of movies in that genre that do it better than this film. Oh, right, so pairing. There’s a lot of smoking, a habit I intend never to take up again, but this movie sort of made me want a cigarette. There was just so much of it. -- MAESTRO + MARTINIS + AFFECTED ACCENTS Goshdangggggit, this was the second movie that made me want a cigarette. Of course (SPOILER ALERT), the ending reminds one that cigs are a terrible plan. I watched this twice, looking for beverage inspiration. There is a lot of golden-brown liquid in old-fashioned glasses, so you could go whisky again. But! There is a pivotal scene with a martini with a lemon twist—which, for my tastebuds, is a far superior garnish to an olive. Here’s my latest martini—spiked with grapefruit bitters in reference to the bitter tears you may shed. The music in the movie was probably my favorite part. There is a memorable Mahler moment, and given the popularity of Tàr last year, I wonder if it will be essential to any classical music-themed movie, but I digress. The performances are likely to draw a tear or two, too. Maestro Martini I skew classic here, but as in all martinis, YOU are the conductor, so feel free to adjust proportions to your taste: -2 oz gin (I used Windspiel as it is what I had on hand, but again, you do you, conductor) -1 oz dry vermouth (I like Dolin) -two dashes of Fee Bros grapefruit bitters -lemon peel twist to garnish Stir all but the garnish over ice. Strain into a martini glass or coupe. Run lemon peel around the glass rim, twist to express oils over the drink and drop in (controversial move, but it’s how I roll). Enjoy your masterpiece. -- OPPENHEIMER + GRUET This is like the third film I’m like, well, yeah, whiskey, especially in a flask, could be a match… I instead decided to honor something much more worth doing in New Mexico than testing humanity-ending bombs: making tasty sparkling wine. Oh wait, do I like this movie? Not really, no. It is literally my least favorite Nolan film, and I recently rewatched Tenet. But even at less than three hours (lol), it is too long with repetitive scenes, and poor Florence Pugh and Emily Blunt are reduced to the hysterical sidepiece and drunken, depressed wife stereotypes, respectively. Entertaining? Ish. Anyway, here are some fun bubbles to clear your palate. Gruet Blanc de Blancs Not only is there a winemaker making brilliant New Mexican wine, but they are also making great sparkling (though, while bubbly, not quite as explosive as the Manhattan Project). It smells of lemon curd, brioche, and Golden Delicious. The palate is spritely, the bubbles fine and the acid and alcohol both medium. It is plush, repeating the aromas as tastes, adding a whiff of dairy, almost a parmesan rind note? Very playful, but at the same time, in the sparkling world, it’s a contender. AND NOW FOR THE TOP THREE! -- POOR THINGS + PORT FOR BREAKFAST “I am having port for breakfast; it is strangely delicious”. From God’s lips (literally, the character’s name is God, but also figuratively) to your ears. I have never had Port for breakfast, but I also never consume breakfast. I was also reminded that I haven’t been in Portugal, much less for breakfast, in far too long. I like the idea, though, so Port it is. I LOVED this movie. It is hysterical. It has a heart. It is an unlikely story of finding agency. After Barbie and Past Lives, it rounds out my top three—am I giving it the bronze? It’s appropriate, given the film’s steampunk-adjacent aesthetics! 2018 Dow’s Late Bottle Vintage Port If you can imagine a super-ripe plum and perfumed compote, there is the nose, ripe vanilla swinging throughout. It has sugar, but isn’t, like, sweet-sweet? More red and blue fruit, some leathered, coasting on a lilypad and cat tail vegetative/floral base. Stunning but cutting but balanced. The tannins are rugged but just post-make-over, so not totally so. It is finally a floral and fruity medley. No complaints. -- AMERICAN FICTION + JOHNNIE WALKER OR CHENIN BLANC Let’s start positive, shall we? This is almost my favorite film of the year. Like a good wine, it has perfect balance: hilarious, poignant, relevant, heart-wrenching and ultimately…nvm won’t spoil it. But in my eyes, it is basically a perfect movie. But what, thematically, to pair? Protagonist Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison is distraught by the popularity of a book he wrote as a joke—to him, it is not serious literature. In response, his agent displays three Johnnie Walkers, red, black and blue, explaining how while he may want to write the blue-level books (complex and deep), his very popular red book will be snapped up by many—and he can do it all! Like Johnny Walker! I decided to skirt choosing between the extremes of red and blue, selecting the black! (Also, I’m goth. Of course I want black). Option two is Chenin Blanc. Just watch the film to get why. Johnnie Walker 12-Year Black Label Blended Whisky It does scratch a certain itch—not too peaty or smoky, but enough to tell you it’s Scotch. Quite a bit of caramel currents run through it, offset by more savory orange and grainy notes (in flavor, in texture, it is quite smooth). It finishes with a dash of vanilla toffee. It fills a void, plus some, but without requiring too much thought. Unless you want to. You can watch this film at face value or think a little about it. The choice is yours but make the delicious choice. -- BARBIE + TEA AND/OR SOAVE CLASSICO In homage to the first human beverage Barbie successfully sips, much as some cis-het men finally successfully choked down a medium dose of feminism, I suppose we could pair this with tea. The thing is, I don’t really like tea. And I LOVED this movie. If I were voting for the Academy Awards, the Oscar would go to Barbie. Sadly, I could only vote for the SAG-AFTRA awards, so the Academy doesn’t benefit from my opinions. Some complain Barbie was merely feminism 101. Sure. But do you know how much of the world—not just misogynists, but mediocre men who never considered their advantage—could benefit from that? And I felt like this movie delivered it deliciously and hilariously, making America Ferrara’s “It is literally impossible to be a woman” speech hit all the harder ‘cause, like, it’s funny, but also, no, no, it isn’t. SO! I was drinking a Soave Classico and…work with me here: Soave is a kinda old-fashioned, or rather, not recently fashionable wine, much as Barbie was considered less relevant until this film. The one I tasted (the last soave, not the last Barbie) took me on a journey that reminded me of the trip from BarbieLand to the Real World. They took a car to a speed boat to a rocket ship to a tandem bike to a camper van to a snowmobile to rollerblades, and this wine…okay, just read on. It is a traditional region, sure, but it has something to say, toeing the difference between conformity and having a voice. 2021 Inama Carbonare Soave Classico Geez, it is good. Soave underrated. The nose gives citrus and chalk with a slight honeydew undercurrent and an herbal undergrowth underlining that. Subtle but outspoken. The palate is wild, volleying from taste to taste. One sip starts mineral, moves into honey-soaked bramble, and turns into a mandarin orange, finishing with lemon oil. It's not the longest finish, but the journey through the mouth as preamble takes a minute. -- TO FINISH I am adding in the film, Saltburn, that got shut out. Perhaps because misogyny? I mean, we got Barbie and Past Lives nominated; could we possibly have another female-written and directed film nommed? Emerald Fennell killed it here. Maybe the Academy was reluctant to give her another trophy after her triumph, Promising Young Woman? Anyway, I don’t know how Saltburn didn’t get a best actor (Barry Keoghan) and best supporting actress (Rosamund Pike) noms. Saltburn is phenomenal—maybe I just love ultra-wealthy Brits drunkenly partying in the countryside who may soon get their comeuppance…but I LOVED Saltburn. And I was served a dirty bathwater cocktail at a screening that was more or less a margarita. So yeah. Please watch this and have a margarita. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Want to read more from Ellen? Check out her recent articles: Ellen in Lalaland: Thai Town What to Drink When You’re Not Drinking for Dewy or Dry January: 2024 Edition Mad, Mad, Madeira World Crémant On Unexpected Reds You can also listen to Ellen's podcast , The Wine Situation here . Check out her recent transcripts of the Final Five questions: Wine Situation Final Five! Elle Rodriguez Wine Situation Final Five! Marilee Bramhall