Miles to Go

A quick addendum to Saturday's "Sideways" post.
There's no question that Miles is a wine geek. But I think the question raised in the Times story was an interesting one. If Miles had been drinking martinis--or malt liquor--instead of wine, would it be easier to believe he had a drinking problem?
As the Times writer points out, "Behind its veneer of glamour and sophistication, alcohol treatment professionals say, wine can be the perfect cover for alcohol dependence because many people do not associate it with alcoholic behavior, not even drinkers themselves."
Even Paul Giamatti, the actor who plays Miles, said he saw Miles as an alcoholic but didn't want it to be the "focus" of the film. I agree, it shouldn't be.
My point is only that Miles feels like a failure in so many other areas--his love life, his career, his ability to attract women. The one area in which he can compete with his best friend, Jack, is in his knowledge of wine. His best friend is a dog. And yet he gets (spoiler alert) laid and gets away with it and still gets the doting--and wealthy--wife. Meanwhile, Miles gets dumped. Gets his car wrecked. And his novel rejected. Ouch. The tragedy to me is that Jack gets laid, gets rich and gets married. While Miles is left drinking his bottle of 1961 Chateau Cheval Blanc from a plastic cup alone in a burger joint.
Of course, who's to say that Miles doesn't get the girl and the publishing deal after the credits roll? Maya does open the door to him after all. And she liked the book--even if the publishers didn't. And one weekend of binge drinking does not necessarily indicate an addiction. Though the fact that Miles stole money from his mom for booze, and drank alone and often, and to the point of total inebriation seem a pretty good indication that he might have a problem. But that problem may not be alcoholism. The problem is that he's 40-something and has nothing much to show for his life so far (at least, in his eyes), but an impressive knowledge of wine.