Once Paul Giamatti famously exclaimed in Sideways, “There’d better not be any fucking Merlot!” — or maybe it was just “I hate fucking Merlot!” (my memory is fuzzy, but you get the point). From that moment on, I realized I was buying less Merlot. Not just that week, not just that year… but ever since. One memorable movie line somehow shaped my wine-buying habits for decades.
Around that time, I was already fan of red wines and I particularly enjoyed Merlot and Cabernet. In fact I would say that my red wine consumption was around 50/50 Merlot and Cabernet.
But after that movie, the 50/50 split became much more complicated, now involving many more red wines like Shiraz (or Syrah, depending on the label), Old Vine Zinfandel, and other darker, more robust reds. I loved the dry, tannic structure, the richness, the way they filled the glass with bold flavors. So although I continued to drink red wines — very few of those red wine evenings involved Merlot.
This didn't just affect the bottles purchased for home consumption. When out at a dinner and ordering wine for the table, although good looking bottle of Merlot might have been on the wine list, more often than not, I would *almost consciously* avoid it, and select a richer deeper *non-merlot*.
So while my Merlot consumption slowed almost to a standstill, it wasn’t *only* because of Paul Giamatti’s rant. It was also because I was discovering wines that felt more adventurous and less mainstream. Merlot still offered that lighter, fruitier side I occasionally enjoyed — but more often than not, I’d reach for something else. And thankfully, no one in Hollywood ever ruined Cabernet for me.
In Sideways, Giamatti’s character is the ultimate wine snob. He’s learning, tasting, judging — all in an effort to become even snobbier. Sure, the movie had plenty of funny and awkward moments, and honestly, I kind of want to rewatch it now. But the legacy for me? That stupid line made me avoid Merlot.
And it’s not the only time I’ve seen that kind of “snobbery effect” in action. Years ago, when my daughter was obsessed with Cupcake Wars, we had an inside joke: “No fucking red velvet!” It came from one of the judges — some French pastry chef who despised red velvet cake. Anytime a contestant presented it, he’d sneer and let them know exactly how much he hated it, dripping with that thick, snobby French accent. (Literally, he would yell “I hate red velvet!”. And yes you must hear it with the accent.)
From then on, if we were talking about cake or ordering dessert, we’d toss the phrase at each other for a laugh.
“I hate red velvet!” — said in your best over-the-top French chef accent.
“I hate Merlot!” — said in your best Paul Giamatti-as-a-wine-snob voice.
Silly? Sure. But it made me realize something: snobs hate mainstream.
And yet… things are mainstream for a reason. Merlot? It’s easy, approachable, and drinkable. Red velvet? It’s sweet, crowd-pleasing, and everywhere. People like them. That’s why they’re popular.
Snobs just can’t stand that.
It’s like music when you were a kid. You loved a band when nobody else knew about them. But once they blew up and everyone was listening? Suddenly, you didn’t like them anymore. Not because the music changed — but because they weren’t “yours” anymore.
But the truth is, what matters is how you feel about it. If you like the music, you like it. If you enjoy the wine, you enjoy it. Who cares what some snobby movie character thinks?
That’s what I should have recognized all along. Paul Giamatti’s character hated Merlot. Fine. Maybe he thought it was overplayed, over-poured, too mainstream. But that doesn’t mean I had to stop drinking it. Same with that French chef and red velvet. He probably just got sick of it.
So here’s what I’ll say to you, fellow wine lovers:
Drink Merlot. Drink what you love. Ignore the snobs.
Except Riesling. I fucking hate Riesling.
Postscript: Here’s an update. I just looked it up, and the actual quote from Sideways is exactly this:
“If anyone orders Merlot, I’m leaving. I am not drinking any fucking Merlot!”
