Oz Clarke's New Encyclopedia of Wine (Oz Clarke's Wine Companions) [Hardcover]

Oz Clarke (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 1999 | Series: Oz Clarke's Wine Companions

One of the world's greatest wine writers has given us a completely revised and updated edition of his authoritative and vastly informative bestselling A-Z guide to the world of wine. Bursting with information, the New Encylopedia of Wine includes 1,588 entries covering the world's leading wines, wine regions, wine producers, and grapes, and is sumptuously illustrated with more than 600 color photographs, maps, wine labels, and other illustrations. As easy to use for the beginner as it is informative for the expert, the New Encylopedia is organized alphabetically rather than by region, allowing the wine lover to find any wine, region, producer, or grape with ease. Other sections include introductions to the major wine-producing countries of the world; practical advice on storing and serving wine, including classic wine matches; and a glossary of wine-making techniques and terms-all covered in straightforward, simple language.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The prolific Oz Clarke, winner of both the Julia Child and James Beard awards for wine writing, takes readers on a structured and stylish whirlwind tour of the world's wine-producing regions in Oz Clarke's New Encyclopedia of Wine, a 416-page tome full of glossy, full-color pages packed to their sturdy binding with photos, maps, and opinionated enological overview.

Early chapters summarize the making of red, white, sparkling, and fortified wines; give tips on keeping, serving, and tasting wine; and vividly detail the traits of some of the globe's grape-growing geography. Clarke's prose is full of tasty turns of phrase: tannic Merlots are full of "gum-drying toughness," oak-aged Sauvignon Blanc is a "half-way house" between Chardonnay and French Sauvignon, and lightly aged Riesling smells like "petrol." But a couple of his pronouncements are just plain infuriating: calling the political Classification of 1855--drawn up by the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce and based on the prices the wines fetched then and still extant in this day of vineyard consolidation and ownership by insurance companies and makers of luxury luggage--generally "still a remarkably accurate guide" may strike one as oddly musty thinking, given his revisionist reviews of Chateaux d'Issan and Lynch-Bages appearing later in the book. But this is wine we're talking about here: one person's "ugh!" is another's "strange but delightful," and wine researchers and armchair sippers alike will find the latter 85 percent of the New Encyclopedia to be the real body of the work: an information-packed, browsable, alphabetical gazetteer of wines, regions, grape types, and producers written in the sometimes enraging, always engaging, wonderful words of Oz. --Tony Mason

From Booklist

Not as wide-ranging as The Oxford Companion, with entries limited to wines, wine regions, producers, and grape varieties. We reviewed the previous edition in our February 15, 1994, issue, calling it "a delight to browse."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Subsequent edition (November 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0151005656
• ISBN-13: 978-0151005659
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,317,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Informative, well organized, and entertaining, November 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Oz Clarke's New Encyclopedia of Wine (Oz Clarke's Wine Companions) (Hardcover)

If you're looking for an informative, well organized, and entertaining wine encyclopedia (versus, say, an obtuse, sloppy, and dull wine encyclopedia), then look no further. Generally speaking, I find encyclopedia-type wine books to be rather dull and a little thin on information, but Oz Clarke has truly succeeded. Clarke's writing style is concise, informative, and amusing. Not an easy feat for an encyclopedia. This 400+ page encyclopedia is an A to Z of wines, wine regions, producers, and grape varieties.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Close to perfect wine book, April 25, 2004

By 

"elnriz2" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oz Clarke's New Encyclopedia of Wine (Hardcover)

There were some areas I wanted a little more detail in, but this is by far the best read out there for those studying wine - well written, and interesting without the punchy or gimmicky writing style of so many other food and wine books. This book was exactly what I was looking for.

5.0 out of 5 stars a great reference, October 13, 2002

By 

D. Rothman - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Oz Clarke's New Encyclopedia of Wine (Oz Clarke's Wine Companions) (Hardcover)

Oz Clarke, of Decanter magazine fame, has done it yet again. This is a beautiful book presenting complete, yet concise evaluations and descriptions of the world's wine regions and producers. As this book was written in 1999, and new producers are blooming everywhere, all the time, the book is not 'per-se' complete. However, Clarke's efforts provide anyone, from the novice drinker to the wine-master, a valuable reference. What I think sets this book apart from other wine encyclopedias, is Clarke himself. His palate is much more keen and his descriptions much more accurate than those of, say, Robert Parker, whose lifelong addiction to highly tannic, alcoholic, "fruit-bomb" wines has completely killed his palate. Clarke is one of the best in the business, and you can have confidence that you bought more than just a prety book for the coffee table.