Every Friday on Moncrieff, the planets align, the bottle opener is located, and wordplay on Twitter hits fever pitch, as the show reviews everything you need to know about heading to the cinema this weekend, or drowning your sorrows in style.
Here's what made the cut on Movies & Booze today...
MOVIES:
Moncrieff's regular movie reviewer Esther McCarthy joined the show and weighed in on two movies this week.
First up was the re-booted Fantastic Four, which gives the familiar heroes a new high-concept background.
Esther calls it "an earnest, purposeful film that sets its stall reasonably well but fails to ever really soar, devoid of the sense of danger or drama essential to make a movie of this kind work.
Next was Al Pacino's latest, Manglehorn, in which he plays elderly locksmith AJ Manglehorn, who spends most of his days alone with his cat pining a long-lost love.
Holly Hunter plays love interest Dawn, who attempts to draw the maudlin and nostalgic Manglehorn out of his shell.
"It’s a remarkable performance," says Ester," in this otherwise indulgent and convoluted movie from filmmaker David Gordon Green. If you’re a fan of Pacino, it’s nevertheless worth a curious peek."
BOOZE:
The country may be most associated with Port and Mateus Rose but, he explains, the reds can be excellent and so too can the whites, perhaps their least well known or understood category. One of Portugal’s strengths and weaknesses is its local grape varieties. Their names may be unknown to you but they are perfectly suited to their environment, having evolved over thousands of years.
Martin estimates that over 300,000 Irish people visit the Algarve every year and perhaps 75% of them will at some point have grilled sardines in a restaurant and for the most part the white wine they’ll be sold to go with it will be Vinho Verde produced in the Minho region at the top of the country.
A really interesting estate just to the north of Lisbon at Toress Vedras. Winemaker Pedro Marques is a rising star - the fifth generation to run the estate but the first to study wine making. Pedro has replanted with a range of Portuguese varieties plus some syrah.
Made by the very impressive Douro based producer Niepoort. This is dry zesty, floral and fresh with just 11% abv. Made from the Loueiro variety. A classic take on this style. The Corkscrew also has Quinta da Lixa Vinho Verde at €12.95. Marks and Spencers has a bargain dry version for €10.99. Tesco has a medium dry style Vinho Verde with 9% abv for just €7.
HASHTAG:
As with every week, Moncrieff invited listeners to combine their encyclopaedic knowledge of movie titles with some groan-worthy punning, this time under the hashtag #ChocolateMovies.
Here are the 10 best from this week's Movies & Booze...
The Bridges of Madison's Bounty @SeanMoncrieff @ivancorless #ChocolateMovies
— David Cunniffe (@davycunniffe) August 7, 2015
Dial M for Moro #ChocolateMovies @SeanMoncrieff
— Richard Collumb (@collumbo) August 7, 2015
Twirl Harbour #chocolatemovies @ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff
— finnk (@meadowgroove) August 7, 2015
No Crunchie for Old Men #chocolatemovies @ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff
— mary mcg (@marydonegal79) August 7, 2015
The Fudgitive #ChocolateMovies @ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff
— G4R7 ™ (@S0litary_Man) August 7, 2015
The Matwix @ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff #ChocolateMovies
— Sean O Farrell (@sofarrsogud) August 7, 2015
@ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff Mutiny over a Bounty #chocolatemovies
— Declan Reilly (@declander) August 7, 2015
@SeanMoncrieff A Terry's Clockwork Orange #ChocolateMovies
— Gareth Soye (@GarethSoye) August 7, 2015
@ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff The Count of Toffee Crispo #chocolatemovies
— Declan Reilly (@declander) August 7, 2015
@ivancorless @SeanMoncrieff Rowntree of Life #chocolatemovies
— Ciaran Duffy (@ciaranodufaigh) August 7, 2015
