Details from IMDB:
SOMM: Cup of Salvation
Original title: Cup of Salvation
- 2023
- 1h 30m
The next chapter in the acclaimed SOMM films, the Cup of Salvation dives into what wine truly means to human history and the land we inhabit.
Initial Thoughts:
This is the 4th “Somm” documentary, which means it is about wine, and as I enjoyed the first three (and have liked wine for almost 30 years), I decided to give it a watch. While I could have watched this on Tubi, I went with Prime Video in the hopes that it would have fewer ads (which I hope it did).
Main Points:
This is a very different documentary from the other three in many ways, as it focuses much more on wine from the Middle East in general, and on Armenia and Iran in particular. Most people, myself included, would almost never think of making (and drinking) wine as a privilege, but that’s because I’ve never lived in a place that was constantly faced with war, invasions and a brutal regime that would take away a person’s ability to enjoy alcohol and run a vineyard. Armenia is such a place that found itself under frequent attack as a Christian country surrounded by Muslim ones, or simply attacked as revenge for a past conflict or even just the belief that the land they now control belongs to another country. Imagine going out to harvest grapes for wine production only to realize you needed permission from the army (as the vineyard is between two opposing bases and very close to the border of Azerbaijan).
If all that doesn’t sound dangerous enough, one of the wine owners, Vahe, decides he wants to buy grapes from Iran, where it has been illegal to have any kind of alcohol since 1979. While buying grapes isn’t illegal, getting them out of the country is, and I’m sure he could have been arrested for any number of reasons in Iran. Thankfully, his gamble pays off, and he makes the first Iranian wine ever made with modern methods and brings it to New York for sommeliers and other wine experts to try. In this movie, you learn not only about wine but about the history and culture of Iran, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. You see people who are willing to risk getting shot (they wear camo suits and bulletproof vests when able) to harvest grapes and keep their towns alive. While people in Iran who ruin vineyards risk imprisonment and possibly even death. It is a fascinating movie that will help you see how wine is much more than something you drink; it is history, culture and even freedom.
Final Thoughts:
Towards the end of the film, there is a wonderful scene where a man in Portland, who owns a vineyard and fled Iran with his wife, gets to drink a bottle of Iranian wine made in exile. He and his daughter are moved by the experience, and you can see what a wonderful thing Vahe and his daughter Aimee did for them; they gave them a part of their home back and maybe brought a little bit more freedom into the world. Watch closely for a couple of the sommeliers from the first 3 films who get to try Armenian and Iranian wine. I loved this movie and give it a very strong 8.5 out of 10, easily the best of the four, and I really hope they do another in this series. There is a little coarse language and some mature themes/images (talking about how over 1 million Armenian people were wiped out for their religion), so I would say ages 14+. If you have an interest in how important wine can be to a people/country, do yourself a favour and watch this; at only 1.5 hours, my only complaint was that I wanted more and found it ended too soon.