Customer Reviews

The Wines of the Northern Rhône

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The thinking person's alternative to The Emperor's '100 point grading system' tome on the Rhone. Livingstone-Learmonth provides a highly personal account of the vineyards, the growers and the wines, along with tasting notes and vintage profiles that reward style, character and finesse more than brutal extraction and sheer "hedonistic fruit bomb" amplitude -- a rare perspective on the wines from this sun-drenched part of France, the land where the pundits go to find big chunky monkey "special cuvee" reds and oily high alcohol whites slathered liberally (and uncharacteristically) in new oak. Rather than you-know-who's hyperbole about the "greatest in history" 2003 vintage, for example, Learmonth offers a thoughtful and even handed view that acknowledges the question marks surrounding the wines from that freakish growing season. In my humble view, this book is the English language reference standard on the northern Rhone, and a great follow up to Learmonth's earlier Faber publication on the northern and southern Rhone vineyards. My taste and my cellar are overwhelmingly skewed towards Burgundy, but this book sent me back down to my cellar to pull the corks on some older bottles of Cornas, St. Joseph, Cote Rotie and Hermitage and has me ready to lay down more of them -- and perhaps to head a bit further south on my next trip to France. A must have volume.

Livingstone-Learmonth does a knock up job, has meticulously researched and what's more--- knows that you should make your drinking decisions by looking into the vigneron or negoc behind the wine and the way they work and not by looking at a score.

Who knew that a guidebook to the Rhone could not only be a necessary resource book but also a hell of a read? This is an in-depth and entertaining insight into a region that produces the ne plus ultra of syrah (yes, viognier and the other whites, but it's all about the syrah, isn't it?).

Every serious wine lover will find The Wines of the Northern Rhone indispensable. It is profound in its knowledge of the soil, grape, vineyard, and the wine makers of the Rhone. John Livingstone-Learmonth's writing is lucid and sensitive. It is not only a scholarly study of reference but also one that will be consulted to select a wine for dinner, for purchase and for cellaring. It is also a wonderful tourist guide of the northern Rhone valley.

Herbert H. Kaplan
Philadelphia

This book stands alongside Cote D'or by Clive Coates as one of the greatest wine books of all time. Its all there, vintage, producer and appelation profiles, in depth!

It's taken me quite a while to warm to this book. I felt at first I was no match for the amount of information provided. I skimmed through reading reviews of the wines I own and put the book down to collect dust. Since then I have returned, have read from page one to the end of the chapter on Hermitage and now have a newfound appreciation for not only the wines and producers of those wines, but for Learmonth.
"Batonnage became the chic thing to do during the white's raising, but the result left the wines flabby and similar across different appellations." That is the sort of detail you can expect; this is no beginners book. I have at times needed to read paragraphs a second time to really comprehend what Learmonth is saying but once I grasp what he is saying I feel as if I am part of a very select group who have delved deeper into the subject of wine than most. It's time for the author to write about the Southern Rhone.

Wonderfully informative. This book has become my most trusted reference for the northern Rhone. It is well written and informative. Mades me feel I am there. While about wine the information about people and places adds an import aspect. I bought two more and gave them to friends I knew would enjoy all the details and great information.

After reading this book I changed my itinerary for my recent tour of Provence/Cotes du Rhone to include three days in the Northern Rhone. I am so glad I did. This book was so helpful during my visit. I carried it with me. After reading this book, the vignerons become your new best friends. It also gives a real sense of place. The detailed reviews of vintages is fabulous. I'm now collecting the wines of the Northern Rhone.

John Livingstone is an old and good friend of mine, and after reading (parts) of his book I am really anxious to try Condrieu and Hermitage wines. So far I always stick to Bourgogne, Bordeaux and Loire wines. I cannot imagine how he con review all those different wines in one life. This book is like a bible.