Drops&nbsp;of&nbsp;God, the popular manga series by Tadashi Agi and Shu Okimoto, has been adapted into a television series by AppleTV and has some buzz in the wine world. The AppleTV series tells a story about a competition between Camille&#39;s (Fleur Geffrier) estranged daughter and Issei (Tomohisa Yamashita), the prot&eacute;g&eacute; after the death&nbsp;of&nbsp;Camille&#39;s father, a famous wine collector, to win his world-renowned wine collection valued at $100M+.

The show has been compared to the 2004 movie Sideways, which follows the journey&nbsp;of&nbsp;two friends as they travel through California&#39;s wine country. Both&nbsp;Drops&nbsp;of&nbsp;God&nbsp;and Sideways share a common theme&nbsp;of&nbsp;discovering wine&#39;s joys and the culture surrounding it. The film had an immediate impact on both tourism and sales by introducing people unfamiliar with wines.

However,&nbsp;Drops&nbsp;of&nbsp;God&nbsp;takes it to a new level with its intricate and detaileddescriptions&nbsp;of&nbsp;wines, vineyards, and the people behind them. The series has created a buzz in the wine world, with viewers becoming curious about the winesmentioned in the show and eager to try them themselves.

The cultural impact&nbsp;of&nbsp;Drops&nbsp;of&nbsp;God&nbsp;has been immense in Japan, with the manga series selling over 30 million copies and the television series was a huge hit. The show has inspired a generation&nbsp;of&nbsp;young people to explore the world&nbsp;of&nbsp;wine and has even led to an increase in tourism to wine regions.

This is a golden opportunity, but yet it&#39;s surprising the wine world has not leaned into&nbsp;Drops&nbsp;of&nbsp;God&nbsp;more, missing a chance to bring people&nbsp;of&nbsp;all ages into the wine world. With the decline in wine sales, it&#39;s clear that the industry needs to reimagine how it markets its products and brings new consumers into its ecosystem.

This emphasis on education is something that many experts argue could be key for helping bring new consumers into the wine world who have until now been unaware or intimidated by all there is out there; young people can significantly benefit from having access to this kind&nbsp;of&nbsp;information without needing expensive classes or sommelier certifications first.

Drops&nbsp;of&nbsp;God&nbsp;comes at a unique point in time for the wine world and&nbsp;offers a significant opportunity to educate and bring people&nbsp;of&nbsp;all ages into the wine world. The cultural impact&nbsp;of&nbsp;the series in Japan and the potential impact it could have in the US and around the world cannot be ignored.&nbsp;Time is ticking, and the wine world cannot afford to miss this opportunity.

&nbsp;

Drops of God, the popular manga series by Tadashi Agi and Shu Okimoto, has been adapted into a television series by AppleTV and has some buzz in the wine world. The AppleTV series tells a story about a competition between Camille's (Fleur Geffrier) estranged daughter and Issei (Tomohisa Yamashita), the protégé after the death of Camille's father, a famous wine collector, to win his world-renowned wine collection valued at $100M+.

Drops of God: The AppleTV Series That Could Save the Wine Industry

1803 is a Cajun restaurant that brings a little of New Orleans’ eclectic culture to the streets of New York. It’s a sexy, sultry space with a penchant for Deep South decadence and jazz. For a memorable culinary experience, this is the place to bring a date.

Pairing Wine with Cajun Food at 1803

Certified sommelier and CorkRules’ resident Somm, Michaela Quinlan shares her expertise on the wine list of il Buco. il Buco’s wine cellar holds a selection of over 400 wines and includes an exciting range of lesser-known, artisan wines from Europe. This restaurant has been called "one of the best and most exciting in America" by Gourmet magazine and the wine list has won Wine Spectator’s "Award of Excellence" several times.

Artisan Wines at Il Buco

Orange wine is made from white grapes, but the skin stays in contact with the juice longer during the maceration period, which increases the tannins and turns the normally white wine a more golden hue. The longer the contact,  the darker the hue, which increases the tannins and a stronger intensity. Pinot gris and malvasia are two common grape varieties used to make orange wine, but if you dig a little deeper, explore a little further, you can find some delightful orange wines along the border between northeastern Italy and Slovenia where orange wines are madefrom indigenous grapes on the region, including sauvignon vert (friulano), ribolla gialla, and pinot grigio.

Pairing Orange Wines at Pasquale Jones

The Lobster Club in the Seagram Building, New York City is a Japanese Brasserie that is renowned for its unique interpretation of Japanese cooking and Sushi, and what’s even more exciting is that it has an extensive wine list.

Fine Wines at The Lobster Club

Unless you are born into a vineyard, grow up in wine country, a career in wine is not a go-to profession for most graduates. But for some people, their love of wine and career path are intertwined. This is how it was for Jane Lopes, sommelier, co-founder of Legend Imports, and author of Vignette: Stories of Life and Wine in 100 Bottles.

Stories of Wine & Life with Jane Lopes, Sommelier, Author and Co-Founder of Legend Imports

CorkRules has been presented with the BMMA ‘Best New Mobile App” Platinum award, the highest award achievement in category.

CorkRules Wins the 2023 BMMA Platinum Award for "Best New Mobile App"

Pairing wine with Asian food is a common dilemma. Just what should you order with the Spicy Yellowtail Yu Sheng or the Mongolian Lamb Chops? How do we make palatable choices that cross cultures and bring out the best in each location’s use of herbs and spices?

Pairing Wine with Asian Food at Buddakan

With the exception of sommeliers and vintners, for most of us who love wine, no matter how many bottles you drink in your lifetime, and no matter how delicious, you rarely think of the terroir, the grape, or the growing process as you drink it.

Chris Phelps on Wine and Life

Upland

Grace Hood

Upland

RT: Hello and Welcome to CorkRules!&nbsp;

A podcast where, in each episode,&nbsp;we will review a wine list from your favorite restaurants. I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Grace Hood, wine educator and certified Sommelier. Hello Grace,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s great to have you!

GH: Great to be here as always Robert

RT: Before we jump in, let&rsquo;s talk about CorkRules. We created CorkRules to demystify wine lists because we know from experience, that sometimes when we get that list handed to us, well&hellip; it can be intimating, and even a little daunting.

Our aim is to help prepare you to navigate that list, find those hidden gems, or value wines or that special bottle that will take your dining experience over the top.&nbsp;So, sit back and listen as we review your favorite wine list.

So, Grace today we are chatting about the California-inspired New York City restaurant Upland. What are your initial thoughts?

GH: So, seeing as I am a born and raised New Yorker who has been living in California for over a decade, I was very excited to take a deep dive into Upland. They have a fairly diverse wine menu with lots of classic regions represented. However, they do have some really esoteric interesting selections as well. Starting us off with sparkling, they have a Pet&rsquo;Nat Trousseau from one of my favorite Santa Barbara vineyards, Stoplman. Pet nat is the abbreviation for &ldquo;p&eacute;tillant naturel&rdquo; which in French translates to &ldquo;naturally sparkling&rdquo; and essentially what that means is a wine that naturally ferments to a sparkling wine when it&rsquo;s in the bottle. In this case the trousseau, which is a lighter style French red grape, is harvested and fermented down to a certain level where it still has enough sugar to create a secondary sparkling fermentation when it is bottled and capped. This is going to be a really unique sparkling wine, and not one you&rsquo;re easily going to be able to experience other places, and at such an affordable price point, it&#39;s a no-brainer!

RT: Pet nats are really trendy these days it seems with the younger crowd! Glad we could demystify the process for our listeners. What about some whites Grace?

GH: So, when it comes to the California selections on the list, they have almost an entire page of arguably the most famous white grape from California, Chardonnay. I thought I would choose a favorite Chardonnay from each region represented and explain the differences within them. So, starting in Sonoma, I would go with the Red Car Chardonnay, which is a personal favorite of mine. Sonoma is a cooler wetter region in northern California so their wines end up being more subtle and delicate, rather than their Napa counterparts like Hudson Vineyards from Carneros, which ripen in a much more sunny hotter climate, given them a lusher richer mouth feel. And then when we move south to the Central Coast, I would go with the Sandhi Chardonnay from legendary sommelier turned wine maker Rajat Parr. This chardonnay is grown closer to the coast so gets all that marine layer goodness, as well as being planted in soil that&#39;s rich with fossil and limestone, giving the wine a more mineral-driven palate.

RT: Wow amazing - not all California Chardonnay is created equal. Thanks for that lesson, Grace. Now, what stuck out to you in the reds?

GH: In keeping with the California theme, if we&rsquo;re looking for light, I&rsquo;m choosing the Ceritas &lsquo;Cuvee Chloe&rsquo; pinot noir from Sonoma coast - aromatic and delicate. Or if we wanted a delicious red blend, I&rsquo;m heading a little bit south to Santa Cruz for the 2006 Ridge Montebello which is a classic Bordeaux blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, petit verdot and cab franc. Ridge has been a leader in central coast wine production and I will pretty much drink anything from them!

RT: Awesome. Loving this deep dive into California wines. What about some value wines from the Upland list?

GH: You got it - sticking with the Cali theme, for white I would do the Hahn Chardonnay from the Santa Lucia highlands in the central coast. And for red I&rsquo;m going with the 2016 Cultivar Cabernet from Napa.

RT: Great choices. And how about some special occasion wines?

&nbsp;

GH: On the whites, I would choose a classic Napa Chardonnay Aubert from Carneros, and then on the reds, it&rsquo;ll be a legendary Napa Cabernet producer, the 2005 T6 from Schrader Cellars.

RT: Amazing! Thank you so much Grace for helping us navigate the Upland wine list. To our audience, thank you all for joining us here on CorkRules.&nbsp; If you would like us to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to:<a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.com">Info@corkrules.com</a> or visit our web website where we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists. Follow us on social media @corkrules and @wineswithgrace

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

Thank you.

End

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Meson

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Cowboy Star

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North Italia

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Carmine's

Herb & Wood

Bavette‚Äôs Steakhouse & Bar ‚Äì Las Vegas

Bavettes

Spago Las Vegas by Wolfgang Puck

Spago

Carbone

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Join us each week as we pour a glass and share top restaurant ‘wine list’ picks, providing you with the knowledge to confidently navigate the ‘wine list’ through somm recommendations, suggested food pairings and masterclass insights.

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Vina, Roots Blaufrnkisch, Slovenia, Podravje, tajerska 2021

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Loimer

Gruner Veltliner 2021

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Heaps Good Wine Company Pinot Noir, Slovenia, Podravje, Štajerska 2021

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Batard Langelier

Polaris Muscadet-Sevre et Maine Sur Lie 2021

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, France

Feravino Dika Grasevina Croatia Slavonija 2021

Croatia

Folias de Baco

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Quinta and Vineyard Bottlers

Governador Tinto 2020

Douro, Portugal

Kobal Wines

Bajta Pet-Nat 2021

Podravje, Slovenia

Casa de Mouraz

Dao Tinto 2019

Dao, Portugal

Le Coteau

Hors Champ Vin de Pays des Cotes Catalanes, de Bruno 2020

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Escabeces Tarragona Rosé, Spain, Catalunya, Tarragona 2020

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Gustave Lorentz

Vieilles Vignes Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Altenberg de Bergheim 2020

Alsace, France

Anapea Village

Rkatsiteli - Kisi 2020

Georgia