The Bachlorette, Wine Cellars and Sabering

One of my weaknesses is the often silly Bachelor/Bachelorette reality show. Don’t ask me why, but every season I’m hooked. Perhaps, I’m fascinated by people looking for love on national TV or perhaps the show is much easier to watch with a glass of wine in hand, which is perhaps the best way to view this show.

If you watched this Monday’s episode, you couldn’t miss the scene in the wine cellar at the Bearfoot Bistro restaurant.  I spent more time figuring out what wines were in the cellar than watching what Jillian (the Bachelorette) and Michael (one of the remaining men) were saying to each other.  As best as ABC tried to cover up what was in the cellar, I spotted verticals of Dominus, Tignanello, Domaine Serene from Oregon and Opus One. I saw lots of great Magnums from some of the same producers, too. And to boot, there was sofa in the wine cellar…hmm…wonder what goes on in here after-hours…  I’m sure there’s a lot of what happens in the wine room stays in the wine room nonsense going on.  This restaurant does have an amazing wine list.

Although much to Jillian’s dismay “none of the bottles, seriously, are from the 1800s.”  The oldest bottle happens to be a dessert wine, a 1907 Blandy, Bual from Madeira, Portugal.   Note to Barefoot Bistro – you spelled Madeira incorrectly on your website and I’m happy to recommend a good sommelier.  But Michael, you were right about the dust on the bottles, I had to pause my PVR to catch it on a few!

Then we got to see Jillian try and open the Champagne with a saber. (no, it was not a “light saber” for all you Star Wars geeks out there.) Kudos to Jillian for doing it quite well although it seemed like half the bottle squirted out on the floor. I like the idea of sabering, but there seems to be a lot of wasted Champagne. Unless the sommelier is a trained professional and promises not to spill an ounce, then I would go for the more traditional method of opening champagne. If I’m ordering a bottle of Vintage Dom Perignon or Krug Champagne there is no way I’d want to lose a drop! But hey, something cheap and cheerful – go for it!

But the best line of the night came from the Wine Director/Manager who said “You know what they say about Champagne?  Burgundy makes you think of silly thoughts, Bordeaux makes you talk about them and Champagne makes you do them.”  Like who makes up this sh!t?    My guess it was the producers, but man, there are way better quotes about Champagne than that one.

If you are a fan of the Bachelor/ Bachelorette show, you need to check out my fellow Facebook friend’s website www.realitysteve.com for his slant on the show. He has a great sense of humour and really tells it like it is.