Foreword | p. xxiii |
Introduction | p. 1 |
Welcome to Our Third Edition | p. 1 |
How to Use This Book | p. 2 |
Icons Used in This Book | p. 3 |
Wine Is for Everyone | p. 4 |
Part I Getting Started with Wine | p. 5 |
Chapter 1 Wine 101 | p. 7 |
How Wine Happens | p. 7 |
What Color Is Your Appetite? | p. 9 |
Other Ways of Categorizing Wine | p. 14 |
Chapter 2 These Taste Buds Are for You | p. 19 |
The Special Technique for Tasting Wine | p. 19 |
Parlez-Vous Winespeak? | p. 26 |
The Quality Issue: What's a Good Wine? | p. 29 |
What's a Bad Wine? | p. 32 |
The Final Analysis: Do You Like It? | p. 33 |
Chapter 3 Pinot Envy and Other Secrets about Grape Varieties | p. 35 |
It's the Grape Whodunit | p. 35 |
Grape Royalty and Commoners | p. 40 |
A Primer on White Grape Varieties | p. 41 |
A Primer on Red Grape Varieties | p. 45 |
Chapter 4 Is It a Grape? Is It a Place? | p. 51 |
What's in a Name | p. 51 |
The Wine Name Game | p. 52 |
Chapter 5 Behind the Scenes of Winemaking | p. 61 |
A Reality Check for Wine Jargon | p. 61 |
Part II Close Encounters of the Wine Kind | p. 67 |
Chapter 6 Navigating a Wine Shop | p. 69 |
Buying Wine Can Intimidate Anyone | p. 69 |
Wine Retailers, Large and Small | p. 70 |
Choosing the Right Wine Merchant | p. 74 |
Strategies for Wine Shopping | p. 76 |
Chapter 7 Navigating a Restaurant Wine List | p. 81 |
The Restaurant Wine Experience | p. 81 |
How Wine Is Sold in Restaurants | p. 82 |
How to Scope Out a Wine List | p. 85 |
How to Ask for Advice | p. 90 |
How to Ace the Wine Presentation Ritual | p. 91 |
Restaurant Wining Tips | p. 94 |
Chapter 8 Everything You Need to Know about Serving and Using Wine | p. 97 |
Getting the Cork Out | p. 97 |
A Special Case: Opening Champagne and Sparkling Wine | p. 104 |
Does Wine Really Breathe? | p. 105 |
Does the Glass Really Matter? | p. 108 |
Serving Wine Not Too Warm, Not Too Cold | p. 112 |
Storing Leftover Wine | p. 114 |
Entertaining with Wine | p. 115 |
Chapter 9 Judging a Wine by Its Label | p. 119 |
The Wine Label and What It Tells You | p. 119 |
Part III Around the World of Wine | p. 129 |
Chapter 10 Doing France | p. 131 |
The French Model | p. 131 |
France's Wine Regions | p. 134 |
Bordeaux: The Incomparable | p. 135 |
Burgundy: The Other Great French Wine | p. 145 |
The Hearty Rhones of the Valley | p. 161 |
The Loire Valley: White Wine Heaven | p. 164 |
Alsace Wines: French, Not German | p. 166 |
The South and Southwest | p. 167 |
Other French Wine Regions | p. 169 |
Chapter 11 Italy, the Heartland of Vino | p. 171 |
The Vineyard of Europe | p. 171 |
Reds Reign in Piedmont | p. 175 |
Tuscany the Beautiful | p. 179 |
A Cornucopia of Northeastern Wines | p. 184 |
Snapshots from the Rest of Italy | p. 187 |
Chapter 12 Elsewhere in Europe | p. 189 |
Intriguing Wines from Old Spain | p. 190 |
Portugal: More Than Just Port | p. 196 |
Germany: Europe's Individualist | p. 198 |
Switzerland: Stay-at-Home Wines | p. 204 |
Austria's Exciting Whites (and Reds) | p. 205 |
The Re-emergence of Hungary | p. 206 |
Greece's Ancient (and Modern) Treasures | p. 208 |
Chapter 13 The Brave New World of Wine | p. 211 |
Australian Wine Power | p. 213 |
The Rise of New Zealand | p. 217 |
The Old and the New of Chile | p. 218 |
Argentina, a Major Player | p. 220 |
New Hope in South Africa | p. 222 |
Chapter 14 America, America | p. 225 |
The New World of American Wine | p. 225 |
California, USA | p. 227 |
Napa Valley: As Tiny as It Is Famous | p. 230 |
Down-to-Earth in Sonoma | p. 235 |
Mendocino and Lake Counties | p. 238 |
San Francisco Bay Area | p. 239 |
Santa Cruz Mountains | p. 240 |
Down in Old Monterey | p. 241 |
Thar's Wine in Them There Foothills | p. 242 |
San Luis Obispo: Mountain Meets Maritime | p. 243 |
Santa Barbara, California Paradise | p. 244 |
Elsewhere in California | p. 245 |
Oregon, A Tale of Two Pinots | p. 246 |
Wine on the Desert: Washington State | p. 249 |
The Empire State | p. 252 |
Oh, Canada | p. 254 |
Chapter 15 Bubbling Beauties | p. 257 |
All That Glitters Is Not Champagne | p. 258 |
Sparkling Wine Styles | p. 259 |
How Sparkling Wine Happens | p. 261 |
Champagne and Its Magic Wines | p. 264 |
Other Sparkling Wines | p. 271 |
Serving Champagne and Sparkling Wines | p. 275 |
Chapter 16 Wine Roads Less Traveled: Fortified and Dessert Wines | p. 279 |
Timing Is Everything | p. 279 |
Sherry: A Misunderstood Wine | p. 280 |
Marsala, Vin Santo, and the Gang | p. 287 |
Port: The Glory of Portugal | p. 287 |
Madeira, M'dear | p. 292 |
Sauternes and the Nobly Rotten Wines | p. 294 |
Part IV When You've Caught the Buy | p. 299 |
Chapter 17 Insider's Guide to Wine Buying | p. 301 |
Wines That Play Hard to Get | p. 301 |
Playing Hardball | p. 302 |
Chapter 18 You Never Graduate from Wine School | p. 311 |
Back to the Classroom | p. 311 |
Armchair Travel | p. 317 |
Chapter 19 Describing and Rating Wine | p. 325 |
Words Cannot Describe | p. 325 |
When It's Your Turn to Speak | p. 327 |
Rating Wine Quality | p. 330 |
Chapter 20 Marrying Wine with Food | p. 333 |
Matchmaker, Matchmaker | p. 333 |
Chapter 21 To Have and To Hold--or To Sell | p. 339 |
Which Kind of Wine Buyer Are You? | p. 339 |
Strategies for Collectors Great and Small | p. 342 |
Organization Is Next to Peace of Mind | p. 345 |
A Healthy Environment for Your Wines | p. 346 |
Investment Wines | p. 351 |
Selling Your Wine | p. 353 |
Part V The Part of Tens | p. 355 |
Chapter 22 Answers to Ten Common Questions about Wine | p. 357 |
What's a good wine? | p. 357 |
When should I drink this wine? | p. 357 |
Is wine fattening? | p. 358 |
What grape variety is this wine made from? | p. 358 |
Which vintage should I buy? | p. 359 |
Are there any wines without sulfites? | p. 359 |
Are there any organic wines? | p. 360 |
What's new oak? | p. 360 |
What is a wine expert? | p. 361 |
How do I know when to drink the special older wines I've been keeping? | p. 361 |
Do old wines require special handling? | p. 362 |
Chapter 23 Ten Wine Myths Demystified | p. 363 |
Wine is for experts | p. 363 |
Wine has to be expensive to be good | p. 363 |
Imported wines are better | p. 364 |
White wine with fish, red with meat | p. 364 |
Numbers don't lie | p. 365 |
Vintages always matter/vintages don't matter | p. 365 |
Wine authorities are experts | p. 366 |
Old wines are good wines | p. 366 |
Great wines are supposed to taste bad when they're young | p. 366 |
Champagnes don't age | p. 367 |
Part VI Appendixes | p. 369 |
Appendix A Pronunciation Guide to Wine Terms | p. 371 |
Appendix B Glossary of Wine Terms | p. 375 |
Appendix C Vintage Wine Chart: 1982-2001 | p. 383 |
Index | p. 387 |