Already Know Each Other's Moves
TASTING NOTES: “The 2021 Two Old Dogs Pinot Noir is perfect for all wine lovers and every occasion. In keeping with its Sonoma Coast roots, this wine’s versatility stems from both its delicate mouth feel and surprising depth of flavor. A deep garnet hue brings life to the aromas of fresh strawberries and lavender. Summer-ripened cherries and boysenberries brighten the palate with soft hints of sea spray. Old-fashioned candy store raspberry licorice lingers on the palate for what seems like an eternity as you prepare for your next sip.” (AbV 14%)
VARIETALS: Pinot Noir
BARRELS: 40% new French oak and 60% neutral barrels, 18 months in barrels
PAIRS WITH: N/A
THAT REMINDS ME OF: The two old dogs.
There’s a moment in every buddy movie where you realize the whole thing was never really about the heist, or the road trip, or the case they’re trying to crack. It was always about the two guys. Lethal Weapon isn’t about stopping a drug ring — it’s about Murtaugh learning to care about something again and Riggs learning he has something left to live for. 48 Hrs. isn’t about catching a killer — it’s about Nolte and Murphy figuring out, reluctantly, that they kind of need each other. The plot is just an excuse to put two people in a car together and see what happens.
Chris Iannetta and Vernon Wells were Major League Baseball teammates before they were winemakers, which means they already had the thing that takes buddy movies an entire third act to manufacture: genuine shared history. The locker room, the road trips, the particular intimacy of a season that goes on so long it stops feeling like work and starts feeling like life. By the time they got around to making wine together, they weren’t two strangers thrown together by circumstance. They were two old dogs who already knew each other’s moves.
The best buddy pairings always have that quality — the sense that the relationship predates the story you’re watching. Newman and Redford had it. So did Siskel and Ebert, for that matter. You can’t fake the shorthand. It either exists or it doesn’t.
