Heineken and Bollinger may be the official drinks of the Bond franchise, and Vesper Martini the secret agent’s drink of choice, but it was a fine claret that featured most prominently in No Time to Die, which was released yesterday.
The film is the 25th official James Bond and actor Daniel Craig’s fifth and final 007 movie, and was shown to the public for the first time yesterday, having garnered much excited anticipation from fans of the fictional secret agent after an extended delay to the production’s release due to the pandemic.
While Bollinger has been the official Champagne of the 007 franchise for more than 40 years, and Heineken a partner since the release of Tomorrow Never Dies in 1997, both these famous brands had a minimal showing in the latest Bond movie compared to one Saint-Emilion.
Fairly early on in the film – which lasts 163 minutes – the secret agent turns up at Q’s house, just as this fictional head of R&D for the British Secret Service is preparing dinner.
Featuring prominently on the table is a bottle of Château Angélus, which Bond eyes, then reaches for before pouring himself a large glass – ensuring the St-Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classé A, which is currently mired in controversy, gets plenty of screentime, and more than any other drinks brand in the film.
In contrast, Craig briefly swigs from a bottle of Heineken in a nightclub when meeting with the CIA’s Felix Leiter, while Bollinger is never actually drunk by Bond in the film, but does feature on a back bar.
However, this is not the first time that Angélus has appeared in a 007 movie, with a prominent role in 2006’s Casino Royale, when Vesper Lynd and Bond – played by Craig – drink a bottle of the château’s 82 vintage on the train to Montenegro.
Apparently the owner of the Saint-Emilion property, Hubert de Boüard, paid for the inaugural placement in bottles and money, and it’s also reputed that he is a friend of the Broccoli family who produce the Bond films.
As reported last week by db, de Boüard – along with Philippe Castéja of Château Trotte Vieille – stands accused of allegedly rigging entry to the St-Emilion classification system, and his property’s ranking within it, in order to inflate the price of the wines from the château, which was upgraded to Classé A status in 2012.
Certainly the appearance in this latest Bond film should further raise the demand and prices of Angelus on the secondary market – although it’s hard to know what effect the current accusations against de Boüard will have on the wine’s long term reputation.
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