to be part of the more than 100 wineries who employ Michel Rolland as their consultant. In his book Noble Rot: A Bordeaux Wine Revolution, William Echikson writes that before Michel Rolland became consultant to Château Lascombes, it "produced about 500,000 bottles of mediocre wine, about half of which was sold not as Lascombes itself, but as the inferior Chevalier de Lascombes." Today, Echikson contends, that even the Chevalier (the second wine of the estate) is better than the old full-fledged Lascombes. Media exposure Rolland features prominently in the critical 2004 documentary Mondovino by Jonathan Nossiter as an agent of wine globalization. In Mondovino, Rolland is seen on several occasions advising his clients to microoxygenate their wines, including a scene at Château Le Gay in Bordeaux. Since the film, Rolland has said that he is "not a fan of microoxygenation. The film suggests I am. Some of my clients inquire about it. It can help in special conditions — if the tannins are fierce or hard, micro-oxygenation can make them softer and rounder. In certain countries with certain terroir, like Chile or Argentina, I may use it." James Suckling, formerly of Wine Spectator, notes in an article about Rolland that "He is not a proponent of micro-oxidation in wine-making as some suggest, and never has been". Michel Rolland is also a wine making consultant for the Amphorae Winery in Israel (marketed as Makura in the United States) and has started signing his name to their premium Makura series. He visits Amphorae and their vineyards once a year and has his assistants throughout the year help implement his practices adopted by Amphorae's wine making team at the winery and in their vineyards. Rolland is among the wine personalities satirised next to Robert Parker in the 2010 bande dessinée comic book, Robert Parker: Les Sept Pêchés capiteux. Influence From his consulting work and media presence, Michel Rolland has influenced many aspects of both the French and global wine industry. Among the prominent wine personalities that have been influenced by Rolland is the Rhone wine producer Jean-Luc Colombo. Napa Valley vineyards under Rolland influence Rolland's first projects outside of Bordeaux were in California. He now consults for many highly regarded Napa Valley wineries. These include: St. Supery, Rutherford Dalla Valle Vineyards, Oakville Jericho Canyon Vineyard, Calistoga Harlan Estate, Oakville Staglin Family Vineyard, Rutherford Bryant Estate, Pritchard Hill Bordeaux vineyards under Rolland influence Rolland