No whining over this drop of the good stuff
TWO thirsty thespians getting slowly sozzled on plonk. It doesn’t sound like a good idea for a TV show. And yet, despite fearing some irritation from two plummy hosts larking about in a Provencale villa, this is actually quite entertaining.
Matthew Goode – you may know him best from Downton Abbey or The Crown – is joined by James Purefoy (films such as High-Rise and Churchill).
There is a lot of wine tasting, posh banter and some bad jokes as the pair behave like naughty school boys on their boozy tour.
They don’t know a lot about wine, but that’s ok. They seem to realise that they are there for their Hollywood good looks and on-screen charm alone.
It’s actually down to expert Joe Fattorini, a brilliant presenter, who talks us through various historical and cultural facts about the good stuff.
And even if you haven’t got a clue about wine (trying your luck with a mediumpriced bottle from Oddbins like the rest of us) it’s an interesting insight.
In this episode we learn that the oldest wine culture in the world is in... drum roll... the former Soviet republic of Georgia. Some fossilized grape pips date back to over 6,000 years BC.
Elsewhere, James and Matthew, in chino shorts and shades, head off for a fabulous lunch at the famous La Palme D’Or restaurant in Cannes. Little do they know the chef has decided they need to work for their lunch and they are handed some chefs’ whites. Doesn’t he know who they are!?