This is a biography of Thomas Jefferson at leisure, enjoying two of his passions--wine and travel. Twelve of the sixteen chapters cover Jefferson's five years in France where he served as our minister and traveled through France, England, Germany, Italy and Holland. "Passions" was selected by Robert M. Parker, Jr. as "1995 Wine Book of the Year," and was the winner of the 1995 "Veuve Clicquot Wine Book of the Year" competition. It is a marvelous account of America's first wine connoisseur and gourmet.
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"'Passions: The Wines and Travels of Thomas Jefferson' is an accountof the adventures of the third President of the United States along the oenological trail both in this country and abroad.... The book goes well beyond being a dry--if you will pardon the term--recitalof facts to become a throughly engaging account of the human side of one of the most famous Americans" -- Herbert Kupferberg, Parade magazine, April28, 1998
"It is a must read for those interested in Jefferson's wine trips throughout Europe, primarily France. Jefferson's erudite and perceptive wine comments are remarkable.... His observations are hauntingly accurate and could have been written today. I highly recommend this book..." -- Posted 10/09/1995 by Robert M. Parker Jr. on Prodigy interactive personal service
"That experience only increases my awe of the rich historical tapestry assembled by Gabler in this superbly crafted book. Any wine love with the faintest glimmer of interest in history should read it." -- Wine Spectator Dec 11,1995
"It is a must read for those interested in Jefferson's wine trips throughout Europe, primarily France. Jefferson's erudite and perceptive wine comments are remarkable.... His observations are hauntingly accurate and could have been written today. I highly recommend this book..." -- Posted 10/09/1995 by Robert M. Parker Jr. on Prodigy interactive personal service
"That experience only increases my awe of the rich historical tapestry assembled by Gabler in this superbly crafted book. Any wine love with the faintest glimmer of interest in history should read it." -- Wine Spectator Dec 11,1995
About the Author
James Gabler is the author of "Passions: The Wines and Travels of Thomas Jefferson," "Wine into Word: A History and Bibliography of Wine Books in the English Language," and "How To Be A Wine Expert." In preparation for writing "Passions," Jim spent eight years researching Jefferson's interests in wine and food and followed Jefferson's footsteps through Europe and America. Jim has been a guest speaker on Jefferson at many institutions and clubs including: Monticello, Smithsonian Institution, Boston Athenaeum, Walters Art Gallery, Cherokee Club, Chicago Club, Dusquene Club. Jim hosts the Thomas Jefferson Wine & Food Society at "www.thomas jefferson.net." In addition to anything involving wine, his interests include writing, biking, wine book collecting, cooking, travel and jazz.
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James Gabler grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. He attended Washington & Lee University where he earned degrees in economics and the law. He served two years in the U.S. Army as a finance office. He practiced in the Maryland and D.C. courts as a civil trial lawyer for 40 years both for the defense and the plaintiff. By vote of his peers, he was listed in "The Best Lawyers in America." During his years in practice, he developed an interest in wine and wrote and published Wine into Words: A History and Bibliography of Wine Books in the English Language (1984), How To Be A Wine Expert (1987), Passions: The Wines and Travels of Thomas Jefferson (1995), winner of the prestigious Veuve Clicquot Wine Book of the Year award, and How To Be A Wine Expert, 2nd edition (1995). Since retiring from the law Jim has written Wine into Words, 2nd edition (2004), An Evening with Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson: Dinner, Wine, and Conversation (2006), and Be Your Own Wine Expert (2011). In 2011 he wrote his first novel, God's Devil, about a priest whose consuming ambition is to become the first American Pope, and he lets nothing stand in his way. Jim is actively engaged in writing a second novel about the Coca-Cola secret formula. He will shortly publish as e-books Wine into Word, 2nd edition, and An Evening with Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The preface to Passions quotes John F. Kennedy's toast to a group of Nobel laureates that "this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever gathered together in the White House -- with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone." James Gabler's unusual biography pays tribute to Jefferson's palate as well as his mind. Certain to succor the most serious oenophiles, it contains encyclopedic data on Jefferson's cellar and interesting trivia on the era's wines, many of which were far more distant in evolution from their modern incarnations than is often supposed. Moreover, by documenting the passion with which Jefferson devoured the world's great wines, Gabler offers an engaging perspective on the genius Jefferson manifested in all of his pursuits.
Passions depicts Jefferson at leisure and does not emphasize his career as statesman except when necessary to develop the narrative. Nor does it address the controversy over Jefferson's moral character ignited by his complicity in slavery, a pointless debate which lamentably fixates modern revisionists. But despite its limited scope, in offering a more vivid account of Jefferson the man, Gabler's research probes certain mysteries about Jefferson's public life, particularly the question why, following his legendary work as a founding father of the nation, his Presidency was less successful. Gabler's Jefferson is a loner whose widowing as a young man left him heartbroken and somewhat estranged from the nation he sired. He sought comfort in a sort of exile across Europe, never quite establishing a home but immersing himself in the best of what its cultures offered. From Gabler's account, one surmises that Jefferson could have retired happily in that fashion but returned to Washington when duty obliged him to serve as Secretary of State, and then as President.
Gabler's final chapters describe with mouthwatering clarity a series of dinners which Jefferson hosted in the White House for friends and fellow statesmen, which he funded personally despite his dwindling wealth. He served wine after dinner, but the meals retained about them some elements of the colonial frontier, with cider or porter's ale accompanying the food. At one such dinner, an invitee expressed surprise at receiving an invitation requesting the "favour of his company" on behalf of "Thomas Jefferson," rather than "the President of the United States." As such details suggest, these chapters are interesting evocations of a time when Americans' aversion to the trappings of entrenched power remained visceral. Gabler's accounts of these evenings also leave one warmed that a man so monumental as Jefferson seemed most content gathered around a table with old wine and old friends.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Author Jim Gabler does Jefferson wine evenings at Monticello on occasion. I have yet to catch him there, but not for trying. It is my understanding that he has a passionate hobby in the historical antecedents for wines and from this standpoint, this book succeeds remarkably. Extremely well documented - he has found items as obscure as the inventories of not only the wines Jefferson ordered during his travels, but sometimes the exact foods he ordered for specific evenings....(50 oysters and a half bottle of wine at the Amsterdam Arms...and repeated the feat the next night with a friend). There are maps, engravings, modern photographs, historical details.....a wonderful book detailing a great wine connoisseur's travels in search of the meticulous details of the art. And it's all laid out for you to enjoy or replicate as you may....or imagine what it would be like to travel, explore, dine, and taste as Jefferson or Gabler.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
This book recounts Jefferson's travels and passions for wine. It is a fact that many of his favorites are still famous today. (Hermitage La Chappelle, Yquem, Lafite) Seeing these names through his eyes is fascinating, and reading about his difficulty with storage and shipping sounds all too familiar. The book gets off to a very slow start; too much statistical detail on each dinner. But it gradually becomes absorbing, and charming. A quaint historical document.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Decent Book
The book has some interesting information and flows well for the most part. The author could have eliminated about 50 pages from the book of mundane facts and data of wine... Read more
Published 2 days ago by Patrick Shafto
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Best on the Subject
If you are interested in Thomas Jefferson's interest in wine and viticulture, this is the book to get. The research if thorough and interesting to read. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Wine Teacher
5.0 out of 5 stars
INSIGHT INTO THOMAS JEFFERSON'S LIKES
This was given as a gift, and I've received many thanks and raves from my sister and brother-in-law about the book. Read more
Published on January 3, 2007 by G. B. Slaughter
5.0 out of 5 stars
America's First Wine Connoisseur
Wine was a lifelong passion for Jefferson, not just drinking it, but also planting vineyards at Montecello and in his Paris garden. Read more
Published on August 30, 2005 by Virginia Allain
4.0 out of 5 stars
A New Side of Thomas Jefferson
Passions: The Wines and Travels of Thomas Jefferson by James M. Gabler is a delightful book. If you think you know Thomas Jefferson guess again. Read more
Published on January 18, 2005 by AE
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Combination of Two Passions
To the Jefferson buff and wine fanatic, this book is a rare treat. I ordered it after spending a long weekend touring the Virginia wine country and Jefferson's Monticello. Read more
Published on August 20, 2003 by John C. Case
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