From Alsace to Western Australia, and from Piedmont, Italy to the Colchagua Wine Valley of Chile, Wines of the World delivers essential information about each of the 35 major wine-producing regions in the world. With detailed reports on the top producers; must-have vintages; maps; buying guides; and the style, characteristics, and flavors of hundreds of wines - this is an unrivalled, lavishly illustrated, and portable guide for anyone interested in learning more about wines.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Another image-laden installment in the Eyewitness Companions series, this primer takes a worldly approach to wine sampling. Each chapter addresses a different wine-growing country or global region, incorporating pictures of lush vineyards, color-coded maps and extensive sidebars. Detailed descriptions of both the wine-growing regions and the vineyards themselves, including phone numbers and Web sites, make this book a resource for both casual drinkers and connoisseurs whose travels take them to wine country. The visual emphasis of Eyewitness guides makes for an engaging layout, with photo spreads and reference maps adroitly packaging a sweeping topic. Delightful tangents abound, many given their own photo-rich spread. The one on crafting wine casks, for example, has images illustrating each step in the barrel-making process, and the one on the art of wine labels shows labels created by American film director John Huston and Swiss painter Hans Erni for Mouton-Rothschild. "Perfect Case" sidebars list the top bottles from every region—a concise addendum to the maps. The book begins with an overview of wine’s history and production, and concludes with reference tables on practical matters like reading a label, storing and serving, and pairing with food. Overall, this is a richly illustrated and lucidly structured primer that would move Bacchus himself to raise a toast.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Contributors include: Susam Keevil, Stephen Brook, Julie Besonen, and Kathleen Buckley.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exploring Wines of the World,
By Steven A. Peterson (Hershey, PA (Born in Kewanee, IL)) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
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This review is from: Eyewitness Companions: Wines of the World: Your Essential Handbook (EYEWITNESS COMPANION GUIDES) (Turtleback)
Earlier, I reviewed a book in the Eyewitness Companions series on French Wine. What better sequel than looking at wine throughout the world? This volume does a nice job of providing the reader with a background regarding wine and then conducting a country by country tour of the important winemaking countries of the world. As always, one gets breadth at the cost of depth. But the tradeoff appears to me to be well worth making.
The context for winemaking is complicated. The work says (Page 10): "Wine is a pure reflection of its `terroir' [Page22--". . .a unique combination of climate, topography, and soil types [that] shapes the character of the vines. . ."], and no other single product sums up its cultural, geographical, and historical origins in quite the same way." Wine apparently began being made in the Caucasus Mountains of Georgia. Over time, grapes and wine spread throughout many countries. Trivia: France leads in wine production, with Italy second, Spain third, and the US fourth (see Page 13). Wine consumption is greatest in France. The US ranks 17th among countries. The first part of the book explores the history of wine, the "terroir" (how the climate, soil type, etc. affect the grape), the various types of grape (e.g., merlot, cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, riesling, and sauvignon blanc among many others), what happens in the vineyard, the winemaking process, and the style of wines (sparkling, rose, etc). With that context as background, the book then begins a country by country examination of grapes and wines throughout the world. Countries featured include the usual suspects, such as France, Italy, Spain, the United States, Germany (and Austria and Switzerland), Portugal, and so on. In addition, new world production in Chile and Argentina are discussed as well as the wine industry in venues such as Australia and New Zealand and Greece, etc. In a short Amazon review, it is quite impossible to summarize all. So, here are a couple samplings of the discussion, focusing on a handful of countries. Part of the fun of this book, after all, is one's personal exploration of wines of the world! Spain: First, a background on Spanish wine, including Spanish Wine Law. Then, a region by region discussion of wines, in northern Spain, central Spain, and Southern Spain. For each region, a discussion of the characteristic variety of grapes, the types of wine, characteristics of those wines, and so on. Chile: Again, the discussion begins with an enumeration of the "terroir" of grapes in Chile, then a listing of top producers in each geographic area, and a brief description of the major wine producers in the country. At the end, one does have a clearer sense of wine in Chile. All in all, an enjoyable and relaxing tour of the winemaking world. Another typically well done product of the Eyewitness Companions series.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Nice compact reference,
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This review is from: Eyewitness Companions: Wines of the World: Your Essential Handbook (EYEWITNESS COMPANION GUIDES) (Turtleback)
A comprehensive, illustrated guide on wines of the world. Can be used as a short reference by any beginner wine lover :)
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
THIS GUIDE ENSURES YOU WILL GET maximum enjoyment from the world's myriad wine offerings. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
Côte Rôtie, Château Pétrus, Côtes du Rhône, petite arvine, chalone vineyard, Château Angélus, mornington peninsula, viticultural land, largest wine region, regular cuvée, wine map, total vineyard area, dominant grape variety, cru sites, fine tannins, vintage sparkling, international grape varieties, flagship wine, important wine region, tannic structure, winegrowing areas, red wine production, wine styles, cru status, substantial plantings Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Gris, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc, New Zealand, South Africa, New World, Alto Adige, Napa Valley, Margaret River, Old World, Chianti Classico, Petit Verdot, Pinot Grigio, South Australia, World War, Pinot Meunier, Finger Lakes, Grüner Veltliner, Ribera del Duero, Barossa Valley, Grenache Blanc Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
THIS GUIDE ENSURES YOU WILL GET maximum enjoyment from the world's myriad wine offerings. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
Côte Rôtie, Château Pétrus, Côtes du Rhône, petite arvine, chalone vineyard, Château Angélus, mornington peninsula, viticultural land, largest wine region, regular cuvée, wine map, total vineyard area, dominant grape variety, cru sites, fine tannins, vintage sparkling, international grape varieties, flagship wine, important wine region, tannic structure, winegrowing areas, red wine production, wine styles, cru status, substantial plantings Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Gris, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc, New Zealand, South Africa, New World, Alto Adige, Napa Valley, Margaret River, Old World, Chianti Classico, Petit Verdot, Pinot Grigio, South Australia, World War, Pinot Meunier, Finger Lakes, Grüner Veltliner, Ribera del Duero, Barossa Valley, Grenache Blanc Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
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