Customer Reviews

Penin Guide to Spanish Wine 2006

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I have found that the annual Penin guide is the best resource for learning about individual Spanish wines and producers. Although it has a good general introduction to Spanish wine, the heart of the book consists of tasting notes and ratings for the most recent releases from hundreds of Spanish wineries. It is an annual guide, like Gambero Rosso's excellent guide to Italian Wines, so it might not have notes on the vintage that is currently available on store shelves. Another bonus is that it has addresses and contact details for all the wineries.

For Americans used to the more generous ratings of the Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast, some of Penin's ratings might seem a bit harsh. In this guide an 80 point wine is very good and a 90 point wine is truly excellent. Penin has 3 decades of experience with Spanish wines and, for the most part, I've found the notes and ratings to be spot on.

Unfortunately, by the time the guide is translated and published in English, it is almost a year out of date! I was able to get my copy from Amazon.co.uk months before it was available in the USA.