Sometimes, opposites make the best pairings. But not just any opposites. There needs to be something that binds them together.
Rick and AJ Simon are brothers, but one would never know by looking at them. The elder, Rick (Gerald McRaney) is a Vietnam veteran Marine, while his younger brother AJ (Jameson Parker) went to college. Rick drives a pickup and lives in a boat on his brother’s lawn. AJ drives a Bel Air convertible (sometimes a Camaro) and can afford to own his house. Even their guns show stark differences: Rick carries an almost comically-large .44 Magnum, while AJ prefers the much more reasonable (but still punch-packing) .357 Magnum.
These two brothers went into the private detective game together, and opposites have rarely worked so well together.
So where in the wine world do related, but opposite, grapes come together in awesome harmony?
How about in Cote-Rotie?
This AOC in the northern Rhone Valley is planted primarily with syrah and viognier, a red grape and a white grape. Unlike most other French AOCs, Cote-Rotie allows for the blending of the white viognier in what is technically red wine. This syrah-viognier blend is delicious.
I don’t think you could mix just any red and white wine together, but these are grapes from the same area—brothers, if you will. And just like Rick and AJ, they are a treat together.
That isn’t to say that Simon & Simon didn’t showcase all the ways in which the brothers' differences made their lives difficult. It’s also not to say that Cote-Rotie is somehow perfect. But both are an excellent mixture of opposites. And a whole lot of fun.