Wine & Winemaking Books - Page 14

California's Central Coast: The Ultimate Winery Guide: From Santa Barbara to Paso Robles

Mira Advani Honeycutt

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 9 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Missing Some Truly Outstanding Wineries 3 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

While this book has excellent reviews of some of the larger wineries in this area, I was surprised to see the omission of some smaller, very notable wineries on the Central Coast. For example, Per Pacco Cellars in San Luis Obispo isn't mentioned, and they have one of the finest Pinot Noirs on this strip of coastline. Aron Hill Vineyards is another small, family owned winery with a Cabernet Sauvignon that's outstanding, and Cayucos Cellars has a Syrah that's a powerful contender for the perfect wine with a holiday Prime Rib roast.

That said, the reviews given in this book are very informative and extremely well-written. I loved the section about local foods and how that plays a role in your Central Coast wine country tour. The book gives many tips on where to eat, where to find picnic supplies, and lists various events at the wineries highlighted. For those elements alone, I'd love to give this book a higher rating.

My concern is someone planning a trip here will overlook some outstanding, smaller wineries... all of which have tasting rooms, very friendly staffs and remarkable wines. If I may be so bold, buy this book for a list of the bigger wineries, but try to stop all along the way during your stay on the Central Coast to scout out others, and be sure to ask the locals for tips on where to uncover hidden gems.

Editorial Review:

Nearly two million people visit Central Coast wineries each year, drawn to the breathtaking scenery and stellar wines of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Due in part to the success of the Oscar-winning movie Sideways, the region has experienced a surge in popularity yet maintains its warm hospitality and low-key atmosphere. This entirely new installment in our popular series is the first illustrated book of its kind on this region. Stunning color photography makes the guide as evocative for armchair travelers as it is functional for those getting ready to hit the tasting rooms.

Bordeaux and Its Wines

Robert Joseph

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Brilliant photography and inspiring words 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful.

If you love great photography and are bored by all the predictable efforts that appear in most wine books, this is for you! Some of the shots by Max Alexander are really breathtaking, and, like the text, they really give a sense of the place. A terrific, affordable coffee table book

Editorial Review:

Travel with Robert Joseph, best-selling and award-winning wine author as he recounts the history and ambience of a place where wine has been produced for more than 1,000 years. This personal tour through varied regions of Bordeaux describes the individual characters of the wines and wine-making hotspots (such as Margaux and St. Émilion), as well as the role played by the region’s climate, soil, and landscape. More than 100 evocative, specially commissioned photographs convey the region’s flavor and diversity. Visit the châteaux, villages, and vineyards, and meet the men and women who, every year, turn baskets of grapes into the bottles of wine that are sought after and savored throughout the world.

The Food of France

Waverley Root

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Delicious, Delightful, De-loverly. 5 out of 5 stars.
11 of 12 people found this review helpful.

Mr Root's overarching theory is that French food can be divided into the three culinary domains of fat, butter and oil. The Food of France reflects this belief and is similarly divided into three main sections, each chapter within a section dealing with the geographical/culinary regions within each domain. Within this structure, each chapter explores the food of a specific culinary region, and highlights the dishes distinct to that region.

Underpinning Mr Root's overarching theory is the premise that food and how it is cooked is intimately related to and is influenced by the geography, history, and culture (agri- and otherwise) of its region. As a result, each region develops a food and cooking style unique to itself. He proceeds to illustrate this with erudition, verve, wit and style. Drawing on his knowledge of French geography, history, and culture, as well as what seems to be his vast gastronomic experiences across France, he makes a fine case for how each have been an ingredient in shaping and influencing the development of the food of each region. The Food of France will not only tell you what goes into an omelette provencale, it will tell you why this is different from an omelette a la nomande or an omelette a la nicoise, as well as consider different theories as to how the omelette got its name.

The book comes with a general index, as well as an index of food and dishes. Dishes are described with sufficient particularity that a good cook could reproduce the dish. I should note that as the book was written in 1958, some of his information is a little outdated (his recommendations for good years of wine) or a little late (his urgings to visit Provence before it becomes too touristed). Notwithstanding this, The Food of France is an excellent resource and wonderful read: perhaps there can be no better recommendation than to admit that I enjoyed it so much that I have gone to buy The Food of Italy, also written by Root.

My Personal Rating Scale:
5 stars: Engaging, well-written, highly entertaining or informative, thought provoking, pushes the envelope in one or more ways, a classic.
4 stars: Engaging, well-written, highly entertaining or informative. Book that delivers well in terms of its specific genre or type, but does not do more than that.
3 stars: Competent. Does what it sets out to do competently, either on its own terms on within the genre, but is nothing special. May be clichéd but is still entertaining.

2 stars: Fails to deliver in various respects. Significantly clichéd. Writing is poor or pedestrian. Failed to hold my attention.
1 star: Abysmal. Fails in all respects.

Editorial Review:

Embraces not only the marvels of French cooking but French history, language, landscape, and customs as well. Here is France for the traveler, the chef, and the connoisseur of fine prose. Maps and b & w line drawings throughout.

Wine on Tuesdays: Be a Serious Wine Drinker without Taking Wine Too Seriously

Debra Gordon, Keith Gordon

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Finally a non-snobby wine book 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

I love wine, but I know nearly nothing about it. I mean, I know red vs white and I know I generally like cabernet. That's the extent of my wine knowledge... until very recently when I read Wine on Tuesdays. First things first: Deb is a colleague. I say that upfront because I hate reading amazon reviews that are obviously written by friends of an author who are trying not to appear as if they are friends. I always know the "this is the best book I've ever read" lines come from friends and family though. So, I'm not trying to do a cover up here. I love Deb, but I wouldn't review her book unless it was good... and it is.

Deb and Keith found a way to educate me about all things wine without making me feel stupid (and it's easy to make me feel stupid about wine because I actually AM stupid about wine). I especially valued their discussion about French wine because I generally get nervous at the wine store whenever I pick up a bottle of the French stuff. I never can figure out the label... it's a complete crap shoot regarding what to buy. I usually do it with an eeny meany miney moe. Half the time, I can't even figure out if it's a French red or a French white. So I generally stick with Napa wines instead. But Deb and Keith explain all wine labels, and then even explain why French labels are so confusing! They break wines into different grape varieties, and, among each variety, give best picks for three categories: 1) affordable every day wines, 2) higher end Friday night wines 3) super expensive wines that we all dream of tasting but few of us can actually afford.

They also break down those descriptions about the taste of wine that often make me laugh. Like mineral. What? Well, duh. I now know that a mineral wine tastes like rocks.

They also enlightened me as to how to taste wine. That was helpful because I often get nervous when a waiter is staring me down, waiting for me to take that first sip. I learned about which wines should breathe and why. I also learned why some wines taste better as you drink them. I always thought it was because I was getting drunker and less picky about the taste, but there's a scientific reason for this phenomenon!

From how to pair wine with food to what type of glass to use, they've covered all of the confusing bases about wine. I enjoyed the book so much that it's now in my purse, so I can consult it at the wine store and when dining out. Oh, yeah, another nice feature of the book: it's small enough to fit in your standard Mom-sized purse.

Editorial Review:

Wine on Tuesdays focuses on the basics of wine so readers can feel comfortable buying, ordering, and drinking it, and on helping readers relax around wine and integrate it into everyday life.

Americans have uncorked a new enthusiasm for wine. For the generations of Americans who want wine to be a regular part of their lives, Wine on Tuesdays eschews the esoteric language of oenology for practical guidance, humorously written from the perspective of wine lovers rather than wine pedants. Wine on Tuesdays doesn't focus on number ratings, "big names," or five different ways to describe the taste of a Cabernet. Instead, it guides wine novices and experts alike through the basics of enjoying wine-from developing a palate to understanding food pairings-so that a once-in-awhile indulgence becomes a regularly rewarding pursuit.

Ancient Wine: The Search for the Origins of Viniculture

Patrick E. McGovern

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The history of civilization is, in many ways, the history of wine. This book is the first comprehensive and up-to-date account of the earliest stages of vinicultural history and prehistory, which extends back into the Neolithic period and beyond. Elegantly written and richly illustrated, Ancient Wine opens up whole new chapters in the fascinating story of wine and the vine by drawing upon recent archaeological discoveries, molecular and DNA sleuthing, and the texts and art of long-forgotten peoples.

Patrick McGovern takes us on a personal odyssey back to the beginnings of this consequential beverage when early hominids probably enjoyed a wild grape wine. We follow the course of human ingenuity in domesticating the Eurasian vine and learning how to make and preserve wine some 7,000 years ago. Early winemakers must have marveled at the seemingly miraculous process of fermentation. From success to success, viniculture stretched out its tentacles and entwined itself with one culture after another (whether Egyptian, Iranian, Israelite, or Greek) and laid the foundation for civilization itself. As medicine, social lubricant, mind-altering substance, and highly valued commodity, wine became the focus of religious cults, pharmacopoeias, cuisines, economies, and society. As an evocative symbol of blood, it was used in temple ceremonies and occupies the heart of the Eucharist. Kings celebrated their victories with wine and made certain that they had plenty for the afterlife. (Among the colorful examples in the book is McGovern's famous chemical reconstruction of the funerary feast--and mixed beverage--of "King Midas.") Some peoples truly became "wine cultures."

When we sip a glass of wine today, we recapitulate this dynamic history in which a single grape species was harnessed to yield an almost infinite range of tastes and bouquets. Ancient Wine is a book that wine lovers and archaeological sleuths alike will raise their glasses to.

Soils for Fine Wines

Robert E. White

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

In recent years, viticulture has seen phenomenal growth, particularly in such countries as Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Chile, and South Africa. The surge in production of quality wines in these countries has been built largely on the practice of good enology and investment in high technology in the winery, enabling vintners to produce consistently good, even fine wines. Yet less attention has been paid to the influence of vineyard conditions on wines and their distinctiveness-an influence that is embodied in the French concept of terroir.
An essential component of terroir is soil and the interaction between it, local climate, vineyard practices, and grape variety on the quality of grapes and distinctiveness of their flavor. This book considers that component, providing basic information on soil properties and behavior in the context of site selection for new vineyards and on the demands placed on soils for grape growth and production of wines.
Soils for Fine Wines will be of interest to professors and upper-level students in enology, viticulture, soils and agronomy as well as wine enthusiasts and professionals in the wine industry.

Beautiful Wineries Of The Wine Country

Jennifer Barry, Charles O'Rear, Thom Elkjer

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Editorial Review:

The wineries of Northern California are as varied as the wines that emanate from the Region's bountiful soil. In this book, author Jennifer Barry and acclaimed photographer Charles O'Rear present a magnificent visual tour of more than 50 distinctive wineries in Napa, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties. From sweeping landscapes to the tiniest architectural details, Beautiful Wineries of the Wine Country captures the beauty and spirit of this multicultural locale.

Trattoria Grappolo

Leonardo Curti, James Fraioli

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Best Italian Cookbook EVER !! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 3 people found this review helpful.

I visited Santa Ynez Valley very often but wasn't able to do it the last 10 years. So, I mist the oppurtunity to visit the Trattoria. But I promised to myself to do in the future. For now I enjoy the Cookbook. Is the best of ALL my Italian Cookbooks. I love the Photos. A lot of it (I don't like Cookbooks with few or no Photos because I have to SEE how it looks). Photos are from done Dishes or People, the Restraunt, Wines etc.. I love to cook but sometimes I have times I don't like to do it. But after I read the Book I had to make a List for Ingridients and can't wait to start. You got it all: Appetizer, Pasta, Fish, Poultry, Meat and Desserts. When you see the Photos the Food looks like you need to be a Chef to cook it but when you read the "how to do it", it's easy to understand and to do it. No exotic Ingridients. If you cook Italian Food you will have the stuff in your Pantry. The Book is a great Gift for People who like to cook or for yourself.

Editorial Review:

Capturing the essence of traditional Italian cooking, Chef Leonardo Curti, along with brothers Chef Alfonso and Chef Georgio Curti, team up with award-winning cookbook author and Touring & Tasting Magazine wine editor James O. Fraioli to take home cooks on a rare odyssey into one of the world's most coveted food & wine cultures.

Michelin Green Guide Alsace-Lorraine-Champagne (Michelin Green Guides)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

very helpful in our driving tour of Alsace 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This was a great companion to our (my husband & I) tour of the Alsace reagion of France which is worth the trip! It is a beautiful not-well traveled region of France. We visited this French/German area on a trip where we visited Mont Blanc and the French Riveria as well. We were greeted with only friendliness from the wineries and other French people that we met on our visit to Alsace.

Solid book 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Maps are good, but could be a little more complete. Found a typo or two on it, but worked for me to navigate to more obscure parts of Alsace.

Editorial Review:

This title in the series explores northeastern France from the open horizons of Champagne to the stony cliffs of the Meuse valley and the thick forests of Ardennes and Argonne.'

Educating Peter: How Anybody Can Become an (Almost) Instant Wine Expert

Lettie Teague

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Editorial Review:

Lettie Teague knows wine. She has been the wine editor at Food & Wine magazine for almost a decade. The only question she is asked more than "Can you recommend a great wine for under $10?" -- great cheap white: Argiolas Costamolino Vermentino from Sardinia; great cheap red: Alamos Malbec from Argentina -- is "What is the best way to learn about wine?"

After many years of fielding these questions, Lettie was determined to debunk the myth that learning about wine is hard. She decided to find just one wine idiot and teach him a few fundamentals -- how to order off a restaurant wine list without fear, approach a wine merchant with confidence, and perhaps even score a few points off a wine snob.

Enter her neighbor, good friend and complete wine neophyte Peter Travers, Rolling Stone magazine's longtime film critic.

Peter Travers proved the perfect Eliza Doolittle to Lettie's Professor Higgins. As a film critic he made bold pronouncements ("This movie stinks," which could be readily translated to "This Cabernet tastes like Merlot") and exhibited a finely tuned visual sense ("The cinematography could be improved" could easily become "This wine is too white"). But, most important, Peter knew almost nothing about wine.

As Lettie begins their lessons, Peter puts down his ever-present glass of "fatty" Chardonnay and learns that there is a huge world out there full of all kinds of wine. He is taught to swirl his glass to release the wine's aromatic compounds -- or esters -- above the rim and vows, "I'm going to do that for Martin Scorsese next time I see him. I'll volatize my esters for him."

Thus Lettie enlightens her wine-challenged but film-savvy friend about the Facts of Wine: how to hold a glass; the vocabulary of wine; how wine is made; how to read labels; how to tell the difference between grape varieties; how to make sense of vintages; how to glean information about a wine simply by looking at the shape and color of the bottle; and an overview of the great wine regions of the Old World and the New.

Finally, after many fact-filled, hilarious lessons, Lettie takes Peter to the most famous American wine region of all, Napa Valley, where he hobnobs with wine and Hollywood royalty and finally puts his new skills to the test in the real world.

Part buddy movie, part serious wine tutorial, Educating Peter is as much a treat for oenophiles in on the joke as it is for beginners who think Chablis is a brand name of wine.