Top Wine Movies Timeline

Top Wine Movies Timeline

Wine has always played a significant role in the culture of the western world. Wine’s cultural significance is best seen through its presence in various forms of art throughout history. In the time period of the Ancient Greeks and Romans, wine was depicted in many types of art including paintings, plays, pottery, and writings. And today wine is still featured in many of our art forms, including films, TV shows, and books.  

Wine in Ancient Art

Depictions of wine consumption and production have been found throughout art from the ancient time period. In Ancient Greece, wine is seen throughout one of their most famous pieces of literature, The Odyssey. Throughout Odysseus’ travels he gives and receives gifts of high quality wine. Images of wine drinking also decorate many pieces of pottery from Ancient Greece.  

In Ancient Rome, wine drinking was such an ingrained part of their culture it is featured in all kinds of art. But one of the most interesting wine-featured art mediums of the time was writing. Some of the first wine writers were Ancient Romans. One of the most famous, Pliny the Elder wrote about his favorite vineyards, the top vintages of the time, and the role of terroir in the quality of wine. 

Another famous ancient society well known for their love of wine was the Ancient Egyptians. Wine is also featured throughout much of their artwork. Drawings of wine production have been found, as well as drawings accounting wild, drunken parties where the guests consumed a bit too much wine. 

Wine continued to be featured in various art pieces throughout the Middle Ages. In this time wine became intertwined with the Catholic Church, and much of the art produced was related to Christianity and the Church. For example, many paintings from this time period depicted Biblical scenes. Which due to the close ties of Christianity and wine, meant that wine was also commonly featured. Scenes from the Last Supper and Jesus’ water to wine miracle are some of the most famous examples of artwork with a prominent wine theme. But additionally, non-religious art pieces featuring activities like wine harvests were also created during this time period. 

Wine in Today’s Art

In more modern times wine continues to be featured throughout our art. One of the best examples is in movies. Plenty of movies today not only feature wine, but make wine a keypoint in the entire storyline. One of the most famous recent examples is the movie Sideways, in this film the main character loves Pinot Noir and hates Merlot. While there are many movies that include some kind of wine theme or subject, this movie is famous because it actually affected the wine industry. When this movie was released sales of Merlot instantly dropped, and sales of Pinot Noir began increasing, creating a real ripple in the American and British wine industries.

Wine has inspired artists since ancient times, appearing in every sort of art medium in the western world. Wine continues to inspire today’s artists and is still seen throughout modern art. One of the best examples of this is in movies today. Below is a timeline of some of the top wine movies made in the last 50 years. They may not inspire you to make the next wine-related art masterpiece but they will certainly inspire you to open a new bottle. 

References:

“Divinity, Drunkenness and Desire: The Story of Wine in Art | Art UK.” n.d. Artuk.org. https://artuk.org/discover/stories/divinity-drunkenness-and-desire-the-story-of-wine-in-art#:~:text=Wine%20has%20featured%20in%20myriad.

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