Wine Masters Review

FIRST SEASON: FRANCE

Wine Masters: review of a documentary serie about the world of wine, created by the Dutch producer Klaas de Jong. An ambitious project, meant to engage its viewers by giving them emotions that go far beyond classic information.

From the very first images, attention is attracted by vibrant colors: above all, the green of rows that, like a precious diadem, cover sinuous hills, the gold and the purple of grapes, the brown of barrels.

Slow panoramic shots show lush countrysides in all their splendor: enchanted places, fit for a book of fables, crossed by placid rivers and embellished by small, picturesque villages.

A sweet and intriguing soundtrack, leitmotiv of the entire serie, accompanies the declaration of love of a ‘vigneron’ for his land and his job: far more than a simple profession, it’s an irresistible passion.

Klaas highlights immediately the deep connection between nature and human factors when dealing with winemaking. His reference to an extended interpretation of the concept of ‘terroir’ is explicit: an interpretation that, in addition to terrain, climate and cultivation techniques, includes people as an essential ingredient in the creation of a great product.

The humanity he refers to is embodied in the great ‘families of wine’: in the first season of Wine Masters we meet five of them, one for each episode, representing specific areas of France: the Guigal Family (Rhone), the Bourgeois Family (Loire), the De Bouard Family (Bordeaux), the Drouhin Family (Burgundy) and the Trimbach Family (Alsace).
They are all very special, there are no doubts about it: custodians of knowledge passed down jealously from one generation to another and perfected over time. A type of knowledge finding its expression in the creation of unique wines, true works of art, whose value derives not just from quality, but also and above all from a strong ‘personality’, reflecting perfectly that of their makers.
The film director is very good at revealing features like this one: something impalpable, but clearly of fundamental importance. To achieve this result, he brings into play the members of these families: listening to their words and looking at them during the interviews, it’s possible to start understanding what it means to be a Master of Wine.

Klaas, whose direction manages to be both strong and discreet, is supported in every episode by the precious comments of two experts, Tim Atkin and Jeannie Cho Lee, passionate journalists and wine writers.

At the end of each video, its protagonists suggest their favorite matches with food. Convivial scenes complete the narration, showing the families of wine at the table and portraying them in what is probably their moment of maximum unity and splendor.

Those who are lucky enough to savour and appreciate the fruits of these people’s hard work, should be aware that opening one of their bottles, it’s like to open the Pandora’s box, whose content is a huge quantity of sensations, deeply marked by vivid humanity: a type of ingredient that can instill unique pleasures in both the palate and the mind.

If the purpose of Klaas de Jong in making Wine Master was to provide its viewers not just with information, but also with sensations, he has been successful. This serie is therefore recommended in equal measure to both novices and enthusiasts, giving the opportunity to really ‘feel’ and appreciate the world of wine.