Category Archives: Film

Submission Time! 5th Annual SIFF Wine Awards

This professional wine competition became part of Sonoma International Film Festival in 2018: It is organized and executed by sommelier Christopher Sawyer and a panel of wine writers, star sommeliers and retailers, taking place on March 16th, 2022. Deadline for wine submissions is March 11th. CATEGORIES & DETAILS BELOW!

  • Best Sparkling Wine
  • Best Chardonnay
  • Best Aromatic White Wine
  • Sauvignon Blanc
  • Other White Varietals & Blends
  • Best Pink Wine (still)
  • Best Pinot Noir
  • Best Merlot
  • Best Red Wine Blend
  • Best Zinfandel
  • Best Rhone Varieties
  • Best Bordeaux Varieties
  • Best Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Best Dessert Wine
  • Best Port Wine

Select the categories you want to enter from the list above. Please provide 2 bottles of wine for each category you are entering, including a spec sheet with the level of residual sugar information.

Deliver your wine to the SIFF office @ 103 E Napa Street, Ste. B, Sonoma, CA (above Maya Restaurant) before March 11th, 2022.
Contact Chay or Danyelle, 707-200-8215 , if you have any questions.

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The Return of Daedalus Howell on The Varietal Show

Back in March, The Varietal Show featured Part 1 of these delightful musings with by pal Daedalus Howell: Technical difficulties prevented the remainder being shared, but lucky you, we were able to transcribe Part 2 for your reading pleasure, enjoy with a glass of Seghesio if you have it handy. (Then watch Part 3 with a Zinfandel of your choice.) Cheers! Chris & Daedalus

CHRIS:  So we are down in the cellar and we are going to start the second part of this conversation based on a couple old selections that I just pulled out for Daedalus.  And since we are in Sonoma County where I thought we’d pull a few.

This is the Omaggio, and this is an old old Seghasio brand called the Four Generations:  It is a 1996 Sonoma County blend.  It is a table wine, a Super Tuscan from Sonoma County, go figure.

There are a lot of people in Sonoma County with names that end with “I” or an “O”.  Guess where they’re from originally, the families?  It’s called italy and the fact is that the Omaggio to me was one of those great ones that Pete and Ted Seghasio, I used to do these blind tastings with them all the time.  They invited me to do them and we would have the funnest times.  They’d make me dinner and we would have such a great time but I always you know

“Chris why do you want to bottle up take home?”

“Give me some more Omaggio, this stuff’s good!

I love their Zinfandels, and I did a great thing with one of their family name zinfandel that was on ZAP:  So if you guys love Zinfandel Advocates and Producers please go and check out that amazing show that we did with the Dry Creek producers.  That’s the home ranch and that’s where really the Sangiovese part of this is from, and then the rest of it the Merlot and the Cabernet are from certain spots of Sonoma County. This is a 1996, are you liking this

DAEDALUS: I haven’t tried it yet, I’ve just been hitting the nose which is brilliant.

CHRIS: The nose is amazing.  When Ii tasted it before you came, I opened it to make sure that it was good, it would smell great!  I mean it was amazing, there’s so much fruit in this for being a ‘96.

DAEDALUS :  And it’s 25 years old and that’s what’s crazy!  You know, we think a table wine is not something you’re going to shelf for a while and here it is.  It’s all the better for it, this is really wonderful.  It’s just the nose, the aromatics alone are pretty amazing

CHRIS:  This is kind of one of those moment kind of wines that makes me remember about when I was with Wine X magazine.  Back in the old days and making the transition from UC Davis into what I do, working for Wine X magazine, is just an amazing magazine.  I mean it really was a trendsetter.  It went against everything anyone told you about wine:  Let’s do Wine Raves in Boston, and Texas and let’s go down to Florida and do the same thing. “Okay, that sounds fun!”

DAEDALUS : Just the term Wine Raves . . . (serious laughter)

CHRIS: I never said no to any offer that I got but I became a better person for that.  This is one of those wines that I think about you know when I go back to my time, and how I grew up.  Especially after you and I went to high school and we went to Petaluma High, go go Trojans and stuff, but you know it goes way back to the time when the transition was being made in Sonoma County, back in the 90s and here here to that

GLASSES CLINKING

CHRIS: I’ll probably give you the rest of this bottle to take home and just enjoy with your dinner but this is a real interesting wine, isn’t that amazing? Seghasio obviously has become a big brand and what I really want to say is the Journeyman, the amazing deli up in Healdsburg, Pete and Kathy Seghasio own that and I wish I had some of their fabulous sausages here and their salumis which are amazing

DAEDALUS: You need all Italian sausages hanging, and a cheese wheel

CHRIS:  Actually that’s a good idea, I need to be curing a piece of a pig right here just because that’s the right thing to do.  Especially if you live in a place where the  Italian culture is big.But you know what this is an amazing wine, how it’s holding up.  This is actually, if we could have those Super Tuscan wines in America, this is a really good example.

DAEDALUS :   Yeah, a little bit of leather on it too.  Finish falls off a bit, but what are you going to expect after 25 years.

CHRIS:  Well yeah I mean, but you put it with risotto, with wild mushrooms or maybe you just stick a piece of meat on top of that and what else you know.

DAEDALUS:  Your pairing ideas are always spot on that’s great.  Earlier we’re talking about music and we’re talking about sort of tangentially about music and pairing and all that we pair our lives with music all the time, right?

We’re always putting something on to create a mood or sort of like bring us into a moment that kind of thing or to have a memory why it’s exactly the same, right? And I think you always approach it that way like “how am I going to bring myself back to this moment”.

This bottle you opened up, it’s not just the vintage that’s bringing us back to ‘96, it’s like the flavors, the things that you remember tasting is fascinating to me you’ve always been like that.  It’s cool to see it in action like if you ever want to get a tour of the 80s and 90s and it’s all right here.

CHRIS: Yeah and it’s locked in my brain too.  I can’t remember certain things about here and now but I can tell you anything about the 80s and 90s.  And it’s just because it was really the time period.  What an interesting time for us to grow up, especially here in Sonoma County and watch this culture kind of grow with us.

DAEDALUS:   The transition, yeah it was pretty dramatic.  And I remember when I was living in L.A. you would come down and on doing stories and stuff like that you talking to me about like what was happening.  I couldn’t really believe it.  I just was like, “What? Sonoma County, it can’t be where it’s at.”

Came back up and absolutely it was the scene, wine was happening so hard and so fast, so interestingly in the area we’re talking like early aughts,  like especially 2003-4. That’s when the pivot had completed and I think it was full board at that point.

On to Part 3, just scroll down!

Cinema & the Cellar at the Rutherford Dust Film Fest

Rutherford Dust Society
Virtual Premiere Napa Valley Celebration

Thursday, June 3 from 3:00-4:00pm PT

Join the winemakers of Rutherford Dust Society and the world’s first film sommelier, Christopher Sawyer for a virtual wine & movie celebration on June 3rd.

During this high-energy event, Alpha Omega, Amici, Inglenook, Frank Family Vineyards, PEJU, Quintessa and St. Supéry will present their Premiere Napa Valley lots, with a cinematic twist!

Whether you’re in the mood for action, drama, comedy or romance– there will be a wine for you in this action-packed session highlighting the radiant Rutherford region, its famous filmmakers and winemakers, and the elusive “Rutherford Dust” character that keeps wine lovers from around the world coming back for more. Join this list of stellar panelists on ZOOM!

SIFF: The Wine Awards 2021!

Congratulations to the winners of our 4th Annual SIFF | Safe Harbor Wine Storage Wine Awards presented by San Francisco Magazine

Sonoma International Film Festival and our jury of tasting experts, led by noted sommelier Christopher Sawyer, toast the winners and thank all that participated. Watch the Wine Awards announcement on the SIFF Vimeo Channel and check out the details below!

SIFF Wine Competition: Enter Now Through April 5th!

The splendor of the Sonoma International Film Festival may be coming to a close but your wines can still participate! Info below for more details or contact Chay Woerz.

4th Annual SIFF Wine Awards: Sponsored by Safe Harbor Wine Storage &Presented by San Francisco Magazine

How To Enter: Select the categories you want to enter from the list below.  Then provide 2 bottles of wine for each of the categories you are entering.

Deliver wines to SIFF office: Located above Maya Restaurant (103 E Napa Street, Ste. B, Sonoma) by April 5th, 2021.

CATEGORIES! BEST Sparking Wine, Chardonnay, Aromatic White Wine, Pink Wine (still), Red Wine Blend, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Dessert Wine, Port Wine, Sake (NEW)

Winners receive digital laurels to use for your marketing and a framed certificate to hang in your winery or tasting room as well as some serious bragging rights!

Judging will be organized and executed by sommelier Christopher Sawyer and panel of wine experts, on April 9th

The winners will be announced prior to the SIFF Saturday Film Screening on April 24th.

Following the screening the Awards Presentation will then be available on our SIFF Food and Wine Vimeo channel for those that missed it. We encourage you to send us virtual tasting content (10 minutes max) and any special offer (need link, description and promo code) you may have to share with our audience.

Deadline for wine submissions is April 5th and we will need your video by April 15th.

SIFF Wine Awards: Live on Facebook, Friday April 17th!

Hey everybody, as the state, and eventually nation, slowly closed their doors to group endeavors, we were finishing up judging at the fabulous 3rd Annual Sonoma International Film Festival Wine Competition.

With the film festival on hold until July 30-August 2, we are going to give  a sneak preview of the wine award winners for your drinking pleasure!  Follow me at Christopher Sawyer Sommelier to watch my LIVE Facebook unveiling of the winners for 2020 on Friday, April 17th at NOON.

Then mark your calendars for SIFF this summer to celebrate!

See you all then! Chris

Napa Valley Film Festival: November 7-11!

Caviar anyone?  You never know what exciting enticement will come your way at NVFF!  Keep in mind that WINE will be poured at many venues from Charles Krug Wines, Gibbs Vineyards, Hess Collection, Ladera Vineyards, Long Meadow Ranch, Mersenne Wines and The GRADE Cellars.  I am excited to attend and share a glass with eager attendees!

Also if you are a Pass Plus Festival holder or VIP member, remember to visit The Studio by Feast it Forward  for their Filmmaker & Actor Lounge in partnership with Wanderluxxe:  Their culinary kitchen will bring chefs, musicians and filmmakers for discussions about film, food, wine and life.

Oh yes, and don’t forget to see a FILM!  Cheers, Christopher

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Photos (clockwise from left):  You never know who you might see at the Napa Valley Festival screenings and activities! #justsayin; Fine cocktails, artisan beer and world-class wine are all part of the extra incentives; #NVFF2018; Many wine venues to explore & enjoy!

Pill Head: The Official Trailer!

For those not in the know (yet), here is a trailer for the much anticipated artsploitation film by my friends Daedalus Howell and Karen Hess.  Read more about the project at the Pill Head: The Website.  Set for an early-fall release date!  Be sure to catch the suave fellow who portrays The Sommelier.  Keep posted here or at the Pill Head Facebook Page.

#pillheadmovie #artfilm #indiefilm

Napa Valley Film Festival: November 8-12

It’s not just for movies anymore!  NVFF is the ultimate celebration of film, food and wine, throughout the vibrant Napa Valley. Attendees enjoy cooking demonstrations, afternoon wine tastings, winemaker dinners and more, as well as an amazing selection of films!

This year the Caldwell Vineyards Maverick Tribute will be given to Will Ferrell.

The new Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch Humanitarian Tribute will be presented to actors Nikki Reed and Ian Somerhalder of the Ian Somerhalder Foundation.

Other actors receiving recognition in 2017 are Nancy Meyers (“It’s Complicated,” “The Intern”), Michael Shannon (“The Shape of Water,” “The Current War”), and Michael Stuhlbarg (“Call Me By Your Name,” “The Shape of Water”) at various scheduled events.

Hope to see you there! Christopher