The Oxford Companion to Wine  by Jancis Robinson (Editor)

The Oxford Companion to Wine 
by Jancis Robinson (Editor)

hardcover with dustjacket , Language ‏ : ‎ English 2006
‎ 800 pages minor tear (1 cm) to dustjacket


There has never been a book like The Oxford Companion to Wine. From the novice to the connoisseur, wine lovers will be enlightened, informed and enchanted by this delightful one-volume guide to the world of wine. Beautifully designed and unrivalled in its scope, it is edited under the keen supervision of Jancis Robinson, heralded by The Wine Advocate as "perhaps the most gifted of all wine writers writing today," and one of the few journalists to pass the notoriously difficult Master of Wine exams. Going deeper than traditional buyer's guides and wine atlases, the Companion sought out contributions and advice from more than 70 authorities from around the world, including more than a dozen Masters of Wine. Its 3,000 alphabetically arranged entries range from brief entries--What is a blanc de noirs? Where is Chateau Latour?--to fascinating longer essays on the intricacies of wine scoring, wine aging, and the nuances of judging a wine's color, aroma and flavor. The sumptuous illustrations include 32 stunning full color plates and 31 maps of every major wine region.
As readable as it is comprehensive, the Companion recognizes wine in all its many roles--as a commercial commodity, as a complex and subtle work of art, and, of course, as a source of great pleasure. Ranging from Abruzzi and armagnac to Zimbabwe and Zinfandel, from Dionysian revels in ancient Greece to today's leading wine research centers, the entries explore all aspects of wine appreciation, the wine trade, and wine-making, including the very latest advances in viticulture and enology. All technical terms are fully explained, and the hundreds of useful drawings and photographs illustrate key processes. From the Napa Valley to Burgundy to China's Shandung peninsula, here are in-depth discussions of the climates, personalities, and grape varieties that have shaped the great wine regions of the world. Other single subject entries include the great winemakers, vintner's terms, hundreds of individual grape varieties, and some of the important names in the wine world, including American wine judge Robert Parker, and Michael Broadbent, head of Christie's Wine Department.
The Companion's stellar cast of contributors and consultants include wine correspondents, judges, wine merchants, historians, practical scientists, specialists from some of the world's leading institutions for the study of wine, including Professor A. Dinsmoor Webb of the University of California at Davis, and even a barrel broker. Other contributors include American wine educator and writer Harriet Lembeck, Thomas Pinney, author of A History of Wine in America, and Zelma Long, President of Simi Winery and the second woman ever to enroll in the Department of Enology at Davis.
Destined to become the ultimate reference on wine and wine-making, The Oxford Companion to Wine is the perfect volume to enhance a lifetime's enjoyment of the beverage Ernest Hemingway called "one of the most civilized things in the world."



With more than 3,000 entries on every aspect of wine from vine pests to specific grapes, this hefty tome has something for both the seasoned connoisseur and novice alike. Edited by one of today's premier wine columnists, the work covers all aspects of wine, travelling back in time to early Greece to examine wine's role in Dionysian revels, then returning to today's wine centers to explore all aspects of wine appreciation. A full third of the book is dedicated to specific wines and wine-producing regions. All those technical terms you've heard and puzzled over at tastings are clearly explained, making this the perfect reference for newcomers to the world of oenology.
For the true connoisseur, The Oxford Companion offers detailed information on the history of the vintner's art, as well as a plethora of details on everything from climate effects on vine disease to the function of the second malolactic fermentation. If you buy only one wine book, this should be it.
From Library Journal
This essential addition to reference collections breaks new ground. Unlike the excellent works by Alexis Lichine (e.g., Alexis Lichine's Guide to the Wines and Vineyards of France, Knopf, 1989. 4th ed.) or Hugh Johnson (e.g., Vintage, S. & S., 1992), which are standard sources on the growing, buying, drinking, tasting, and enjoying of wine, this work broadens the discussion to "less obvious topics, such as animals (their function as vine pests), auctions, the specific influence of the British, and Australians, on the world of wine, fashion, fraud, global overproduction, wine in literature and art, and the role of water throughout wine production." About 3000 alphabetically arranged entries range from the most familiar topics, such as "California," to the quite obscure (e.g., "Xynisteri," a white grape grown on Cyprus). Yet those less interested in the esoterica of wine will surely find the information they seek, as about 70 percent of the book is concerned with specific wines and areas of wine production. There is also practical guidance on such matters as serving wine and matching the right wine with the right food. Editor Robinson, who writes regularly for the Wine Spectator, is widely respected for her taste and abilities. Here she assembles an international cast of over 70 experts. Since only a small number are from the United States and since many may be unfamiliar to the average American reader, this work is also valuable as a kind of directory of authorities on wine-related subjects. While erudite, this book is not dry; historical anecdotes abound. The text is complemented by over 250 fascinating illustrations, which include an aroma wheel, maps, a red wine-making chart, labels, a varietal geneaology, a wine-tasting sheet used by judges, and more. This book, which offers something for everyone, is highly recommended.
Wendy Miller, Lexington P.L., Ky.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.