Plenty of relationships get their start when boy meets girl at a wedding, so it was not especially notable when Julian Rodier met Camille Broderick that way last summer. It is slightly unusual that he was the videographer and she was the caterer, and their encounter would lead to the 2016 Wine Spectator Video Contest winner, "A Nebbiolo’s Story".
Both had restaurant backgrounds—Julian in management and Camille as a cook, sommelier and manager. And both transformed their careers to focus on people and their stories; Julian became a videographer, and Camille, after working for a number of Champagne houses, heads up the Saltbox Farm catering company in Massachusetts and hosts a Nantucket-based radio show on NPR, Camille’s Demi Hour. And the plot thickens.
Julian explained, “[At the wedding, it was] love at first sight. We were engaged four months later and traveled to Barolo on our first international trip together. I was new to wine, but was blown away by the beauty and history that is Piedmont. Barolos are now my favorite wine, and Camille says I have good taste.”
"Piedmont was stunning, with its vineyards and mountains. But mostly we learned a lot about people," said Camille. They were fortunate to visit the Vajra winery, owned and run by the Vaira family, who “opened their doors to us.” A short video turned into a return trip and a larger project featuring the family. Julian was in charge of capturing visuals and audio (and flying the drone) while Camille used her wine knowledge and interviewing skills to connect with the family.
The handsome star of the winning cut, winemaker Giuseppe, remembers how he grew up with the vineyard. He also describes the struggle required to make Barolo as well as the ethereal wines that Nebbiolo can produce. The story of commitment and reward sounds like a delicious wine and a fabulous relationship.
For Camille and Julian, that trip to Piedmont was successful in more ways than one. Besides producing the winning video, they were married last month. Congratulations to the newlyweds—and the producers of this year’s winning video.
For their first-place finish, Camille and Julian have earned a pair of tickets to the 2016 Wine Spectator New York Wine Experience this October, where their video will be screened as part of the seminar series.
Coming in second is another video shot in Italy, “I Wish You Were Here with Me.” Renowned viticulturist Marco Simonit, who was raised in Friuli, wanted this video to “feel like our eyes are linked to our heart. In this way we hope to share with others the emotions that our region inspires in us.” His words, and the scenery, are poetic. Multitalented Marco, along with his business partner Pierpaolo Sirch, recently planted the new Terlato Pinot Grigio vineyard in Friuli.
Third place belongs to an unlikely-sounding group of guys. Comedian/talk show host Graham Norton welcomes a pair of New Zealand vintners, Rob “Crusher” Cameron and Tim “Twinkle-Toes” Lightbourne of Invivo Wines, to County Cork in the appropriately-titled video, “You’ve Been Cork’d.”
Fourth place is split among three videos from three continents. “Sustainable New Zealand,” with gorgeous photography—from Andréa Johnson and Bob Holmes of Lumaria and Colin West of Wineram—reveals the human side of sustainability. From Mendoza, Argentina, “Made in Family” portrays the Gonzales Toso brothers and sisters working together to preserve the family winery, Hacienda del Plata. The eldest, Juan Pablo Gonzalez, shared, “It’s not just a business, it’s a feeling—even with all the difficulties—of hope.” And finally, among our top finishers, there’s a leisurely afternoon four-wheeling around the vineyards with “Phil Coturri: Sonoma Valley Original,” from Sonoma Valley Wine.
Kudos to the rest of the finalists. There’s the whimsical "Aha!" wine story, “Magical Mystery of Musigny,” written by John Meyer and illustrated by Emmet Goodman of Brooklyn, N.Y. “House Beats, Wine Groove” from Kosta Browne Winery in Sonoma got us all dancing. Another contender was Matt Fowles from Victoria, Australia, who showed us how to source food and wine from his vineyards in “Pairing Wild Rabbit with Shiraz.” And finally, there’s a feat of engineering from Mike Head of Princeton, N.J., who demonstrates “How to Open & Pour a Nebuchadnezzar.”
Watch “A Nebbiolo’s Story,” along with all the Finalists and Honorable Mentions, at WineSpectator.com/VideoContest2016. And start thinking about your entry to Wine Spectator’s 2017 Video Contest.