Wine Spectator's Complete Wine Tasting Kit


Book Description

From the editors of the critically acclaimed Wine Spectator magazine comes this revolutionary new idea for conducting at-home blind tastings the way the experts do. Kit includes everything you need to stage a blind tasting for six: Harvey Steiman's Essentials of Wine, Wine Spectator's Pocket Guide to Wine, Quick Guide to Wine Tasting, bottle bags, tasting checklists, stemware tags, corkscrew.




Corkscrewed


Book Description

Robert V. Camuto s interest in wine turned into a passion when he moved to France and began digging into local soils and cellars. Corkscrewed recounts Camuto s journey through France s myriad regions and how the journey brought about a profound change in everything he believed about wine. The world of great wines was once dominated by great Bordeaux ch'teaux. As those ch'teaux were bought up by moguls and international corporations, the heart of French winemaking moved into the realm of small producers, whose wines reflect the stunning diversity of regional environment, soil, and culture terroir. In this book we follow Camuto across France as he works harvesting grapes in Alsace, learns about wine and bombs in Corsica, and eats and drinks his way through the world s greatest bacchanalia in Burgundy. Along the route he discovers a new generation of winemakers who have rejected chemicals, additives, and technologically altered wines. His book charts an odyssey into this new world of French wine, a world of biodynamic winegrowing, herbal treatments, lunar cycles, and grape varieties long ago dismissed as difficult. A celebration of the diversity that makes French wine more than a mere commodity, Camuto s work is a delightful look beyond the supermarket to the various flavors offered by the true vintners of France.




The New Rules of Cheese


Book Description

A fun and quirky guide to the essential rules for enjoying cheese “The New Rules of Cheese will empower you to choose a more flavorful future, one that supports the small dairies and cheesemakers that further the diverse and resilient landscape we so desperately need.”—Dan Barber, chef and co-owner of Blue Hill NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW AND THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION This richly illustrated book from a lauded cheesemonger—perfect for all cheese fans, from newcomers to experts—teaches you how to make a stylish cheese platter, repurpose nibs and bits of leftover cheese into something delicious, and expand your cheese palate and taste cheeses properly. Alongside the history and fundamentals of cheese-making, you’ll even learn why cheese is actually good for you (and doesn’t make you fat!), find enlightenment on the great dairy debate—pasteurized versus not pasteurized—and improve your cheese vocabulary with a handy lexicon chart.




Godforsaken Grapes


Book Description

There are nearly 1,400 known varieties of wine grapes in the world—from altesse to zierfandler—but 80 percent of the wine we drink is made from only 20 grapes. In Godforsaken Grapes, Jason Wilson looks at how that came to be and embarks on a journey to discover what we miss. Stemming from his own growing obsession, Wilson moves far beyond the “noble grapes,” hunting down obscure and underappreciated wines from Switzerland, Austria, Portugal, France, Italy, the United States, and beyond. In the process, he looks at why these wines fell out of favor (or never gained it in the first place), what it means to be obscure, and how geopolitics, economics, and fashion have changed what we drink. A combination of travel memoir and epicurean adventure, Godforsaken Grapes is an entertaining love letter to wine.




Shadows in the Vineyard


Book Description

Journalist Maximillian Potter uncovers a fascinating plot to destroy the vines of La Romance-Conti, Burgundy's finest and most expensive wine. In January 2010, Aubert de Villaine, the famed proprietor of the Domaine de la Romance-Conti, the tiny, storied vineyard that produces the most expensive, exquisite wines in the world, received an anonymous note threatening the destruction of his priceless vines by poison—a crime that in the world of high-end wine is akin to murder—unless he paid a one million euro ransom. Villaine believed it to be a sick joke, but that proved a fatal miscalculation and the crime shocked this fabled region of France. The sinister story that Vanity Fair journalist Maximillian Potter uncovered would lead to a sting operation by some of France's top detectives, the primary suspect's suicide, and a dramatic investigation. This botanical crime threatened to destroy the fiercely traditional culture surrounding the world's greatest wine. Shadows in the Vineyard takes us deep into a captivating world full of fascinating characters, small-town French politics, an unforgettable narrative, and a local culture defined by the twinned veins of excess and vitality and the deep reverent attention to the land that runs through it.




The Winemaker's Hand


Book Description

More than 40 vintners from across America and around the world reveal their winemaking secrets in this collection of fascinating interviews. In The Winemaker’s Hand, professional winemakers from Napa Valley to the Finger Lakes and from Chile to Italy share their personal approach to the ancient—yet constantly evolving—craft of winemaking. In candid discussions, they reveal how a combination of talent, passion, and experience shape the outcome of their individual wines. Wine and food writer Natalie Berkowitz interviews winemakers from small family wineries as well as large corporations that produce bottles in the hundreds of thousands. They discuss familiar and unfamiliar grape varietals, local terroirs, and the vagaries of Mother Nature—as well as how new technologies are revolutionizing historic winemaking practices. Complete with personal recipes, maps of winemaking regions, and an aroma wheel capturing the vast array of wine's complex flavors and aromas, The Winemaker’s Hand is a globe-hopping tour through the world of wine.




Matt Kramer on Wine


Book Description

Presents a retrospective collection of essays and columns on wine, covering such topics as terroir, glassware, grapes and regions, and prominent figures in wine making.




Wines of the Southern Hemisphere


Book Description

The southern hemisphere is fast becoming the hottest source of delicious, affordable wine--and this is the first book to focus entirely on this bourgeoning industry. Created by the renowned “World Wine Guys,” Wines of the Southern Hemisphere provides the latest information on the best wineries in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa, and Uruguay. In addition, the guide features interviews with top winemakers and recipes to pair with their wines.




Tasting & Grading Wine


Book Description

Clive Michelsen covers the fundamentals of wine appreciation in a clear, straight-forward style, from the essential aspects of viticulture, winemaking, styles of wine, defects and flaws, sensory analysis and grape varietal characteristics, to wine buying, storage and serving.




The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia


Book Description

Three-time Wine Writer of the Year Tom Stevenson updates and enriches his award-winning visual guide to the wines of the world. Described as 'a heroic piece of work . . . an indispensable book which should be part of any serious wine lover's library' Sunday Times. From the Old World to the New, including all the emerging regions, pick up the latest on all the wine-producing areas across the globe; covers every appellation, official and unofficial, and all the best producers. Plus, find practical advice on tasting, storing and serving as well as expert tips on choosing food to accompany wine. A tantalising read which will appeal to any serious wine drinker's palate.