Extremely Pale Rose: A Very French Adventure (Hardcover)

by Jamie Ivey (Author) "It was a lunch that changed our lives..." (more)
Key Phrases: Madame Etienne, Saint Tropez, Domaine Ott (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
First-time author Ivey, his wife and friends were enjoying a languid afternoon in France, sipping their favorite rosé and conversing in stilted French with a woman at a neighboring table, a vintner who claimed to have the palest rosé in all of France. Due to a misinterpretation on Ivey's part, he offers to find an even paler bottle within a year and submit it for her review. Soon, Ivey and Co. are off to Paris to meet with the first of many experts who will guide their journey. The trio winds their way through Champagne and other regions with varying degrees of success. A turning point comes when they taste a darker rosé that eclipses the best varieties of pale rosé, causing them to wonder whether or not pale rosé is the be-all of rosés. Ivey does an admirable job of setting the scenes, but the people he encounters never become more than his descriptions, and they pop in and out so quickly that it's difficult to keep them straight. Ivey never makes his journey the reader's journey, and the story leaves the reader in the dust without so much as a sip of wine for solace.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"As with rosé, the ultimate fun wine...what counts is atmosphere, wit and of course amusing French people. It's great fun to read, especially if you enjoy sticking you nose into all sorts of little-known corners of France. The Iveys...can’t help but enjoy themselves, and so will readers."--Eric Asimov, The New York Times' blog, "The Pour""A light, entertaining tale."--Wine Enthusiast

"Witty escapism for those who enjoy, or enjoy reading about, good wine, good food, and good travel."--Library Journal

"Delightfully quirky debut….Full-bodied."--Kirkus

"In this carefree, breezy romp through the vineyards of Southern France, Jamie Ivey infuses a simple wine with the beauty of the countryside. Ivey will change the way you think of--and drink--rosé forever."--Natalie McLean, James Beard Award-winning publisher of Nat Decants at www.nataliemaclean.com

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

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Product Details Hardcover: 304 pages Publisher: St. Martin's Press (May 16, 2006) Language: English ISBN-10: 0312349564 ISBN-13: 978-0312349561 Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.3 inches Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,092,524 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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First Sentence:
It was a lunch that changed our lives. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Madame Etienne, Saint Tropez, Domaine Ott, Les Lecques, Sainte Marguerite, Guy de Saint Victor, Nicolas Reverdy, Saint Florent, Saint Martin, Saint Maximin, Laurent Fournier, New World, Pascal Paoli, Peter Tate, Tour de France, Arc de Triomphe, Christophe Delorme, First World War, Land Rover, Mary Poppins, Royal Family, Tim Johnston

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This book cites 1 book:

• The Vineyards of France by Don Philpott on page 49

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews 5 star:  (3) 4 star:  (2) 3 star:  (1) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.3 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely marvelous , October 2, 2006 By  Marie Leppard (Halifax, NS Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    Extremely Pale Rosé is a wonderful book for anyone who loves Provence or for anyone who wants to learn more about this special part of France. I'm one of the former and reading this book made me wish I was back there right now. Jamie's writing style is easy to read and the story holds your interest. There's lots of good, accurate information and you really feel you get to know Jamie, Tanya and Peter as you go along for the ride on their quest. Once you open this book and start reading, it's easy to forget the world around you. So, pour yourself a nice chilled glass of Provencal rosé and lose yourself in this fabulous book. 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars great read, September 5, 2006 By  JHSP Dunn - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    i tell you, this book was the surprise hit of the summer for me. i picked it up as i like travel and drink and liked the premise of the challenge in the story. i thought it'd be a gentle read that i'd dip in and out of, but i found i couldn't put it down. you get really involved in the characters as they search through france on their quest. before you know it you've found out a great deal about wine, france, how comic/kind/annoying/helpful the french can be. i didn't expect it to be as amusing as it is - from beginning to end, it kept me chukling to myself. it was beautifully written and i think anyone who's ever dreamt of searching for a better and more uplifting alternative to their daily drudge should give it a go. uplifting! more please, mr ivey! 2 of 2 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating quest in France, December 20, 2007 By  Robert C. Ross (New Jersey) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    This review is from: Extremely Pale Rose: A Very French Adventure (Paperback) While in Provence one summer, a French lady mistook a conversation about Jamie Ivey's niece Rosie for a conversation about rosé. In a quirky way, this conversation leads James Ivey, his wife Tanya and their friend Peter to a journey to find the palest rosé in France. This is a marvelous road book with three distinctive characters visiting the main rosé-producng areas in France: Champagne, the Loire, the Jura, Bordeaux, Dordogne, the Rhône, Provence, Languedoc and Corsica. Ivey is a lapsed attorney and his first book is written in an offbeat way. The three wander through tiny bars, local bistros, wine fairs, many chateux and vineyards, and wine shops. There's an important sideline: Peter's attempts to find particularly smelly cheeses. This is charming British style travel writing from someone who clearly loves France, wine, food and people. Ivey claims that according to French lore, rosé should be the pink of a baby's skin. These two extracts will demonstrate the extremes you will encounter in these pages: "Why is pale rosé so popular", asked Tanya? "Because people like you don't know a good wine from a bad one." Tim: "Historically, rosé was a dreadful wine. It used to be made from re-wine leftovers. It would be put in a forgotten vat in the corner of the cave and sold for next to nothing to anyone foolish enough to buy it. "But that's not true any more. There's not a great winemaker in France who hasn't learnt his trade by producing a good rosé. It's the hardest wine to make, much more complex than red or white. France is making some fantastic rosé now, and it's real wine that can accompany food. Anyone who is still snobbish about it is wrong." ____ The authors have now created an excellent blog describing their further adventures in the wine world; Google extremelypalerose . The subtitle of the blog tells the tale: "From London lawyer to Provencal wine merchant,author and now travelling salesman - the continuing story of pale pink wine and life in the south of France." The introduction to the blog carries on the appeal of the book: "Just to update those who have read Extremely Pale Rose: A Very French Adventure, Tanya and I are now running our own wine business in the south of France. We live near the village of Lourmarin and our shop front is the local markets. When we started trading in October last year one of the locals observed that we would be "living on love and cold water." They were right. We survived a long cold winter and sold practically no wine. But we made friends with the other market traders and secured our pitches in three local villages for the summer and now at last the tourists and the sun have arrived." Robert C. Ross 2007 2008		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 4.0 out of 5 stars Extremely Fine Read What a delightful read for a Francophile. One gets a marvelous sense of the country, its ordinary (and extraordinary) people and how they live their lives. Read more Published 4 months ago by D. Carver 3.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining read This is a very entertaining and quick read. I learned loads about French rose wines while reading it. Published 20 months ago by Fran W. Ginn 5.0 out of 5 stars A lively, fun story of a hilarious quest. EXTREMELY PALE ROSE: A VERY FRENCH ADVENTURE will appeal to any who love France and French food and travel. Read more Published on September 23, 2006 by Midwest Book Review Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (May 16, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312349564
• ISBN-13: 978-0312349561
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,092,524 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely marvelous , October 2, 2006

By	Marie Leppard (Halifax, NS Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Extremely Pale Rosé is a wonderful book for anyone who loves Provence or for anyone who wants to learn more about this special part of France. I'm one of the former and reading this book made me wish I was back there right now. Jamie's writing style is easy to read and the story holds your interest. There's lots of good, accurate information and you really feel you get to know Jamie, Tanya and Peter as you go along for the ride on their quest. Once you open this book and start reading, it's easy to forget the world around you. So, pour yourself a nice chilled glass of Provencal rosé and lose yourself in this fabulous book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great read, September 5, 2006

By	JHSP Dunn - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

i tell you, this book was the surprise hit of the summer for me. i picked it up as i like travel and drink and liked the premise of the challenge in the story. i thought it'd be a gentle read that i'd dip in and out of, but i found i couldn't put it down. you get really involved in the characters as they search through france on their quest. before you know it you've found out a great deal about wine, france, how comic/kind/annoying/helpful the french can be. i didn't expect it to be as amusing as it is - from beginning to end, it kept me chukling to myself. it was beautifully written and i think anyone who's ever dreamt of searching for a better and more uplifting alternative to their daily drudge should give it a go. uplifting! more please, mr ivey!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating quest in France, December 20, 2007

By	Robert C. Ross (New Jersey) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Extremely Pale Rose: A Very French Adventure (Paperback)

While in Provence one summer, a French lady mistook a conversation about Jamie Ivey's niece Rosie for a conversation about rosé. In a quirky way, this conversation leads James Ivey, his wife Tanya and their friend Peter to a journey to find the palest rosé in France. This is a marvelous road book with three distinctive characters visiting the main rosé-producng areas in France: Champagne, the Loire, the Jura, Bordeaux, Dordogne, the Rhône, Provence, Languedoc and Corsica.

Ivey is a lapsed attorney and his first book is written in an offbeat way. The three wander through tiny bars, local bistros, wine fairs, many chateux and vineyards, and wine shops. There's an important sideline: Peter's attempts to find particularly smelly cheeses. This is charming British style travel writing from someone who clearly loves France, wine, food and people.

Ivey claims that according to French lore, rosé should be the pink of a baby's skin. These two extracts will demonstrate the extremes you will encounter in these pages:

"Why is pale rosé so popular", asked Tanya?
"Because people like you don't know a good wine from a bad one."

Tim: "Historically, rosé was a dreadful wine. It used to be made from re-wine leftovers. It would be put in a forgotten vat in the corner of the cave and sold for next to nothing to anyone foolish enough to buy it.

"But that's not true any more. There's not a great winemaker in France who hasn't learnt his trade by producing a good rosé. It's the hardest wine to make, much more complex than red or white. France is making some fantastic rosé now, and it's real wine that can accompany food. Anyone who is still snobbish about it is wrong."

____

The authors have now created an excellent blog describing their further adventures in the wine world; Google extremelypalerose . The subtitle of the blog tells the tale: "From London lawyer to Provencal wine merchant,author and now travelling salesman - the continuing story of pale pink wine and life in the south of France."

The introduction to the blog carries on the appeal of the book:

"Just to update those who have read Extremely Pale Rose: A Very French Adventure, Tanya and I are now running our own wine business in the south of France. We live near the village of Lourmarin and our shop front is the local markets. When we started trading in October last year one of the locals observed that we would be "living on love and cold water." They were right. We survived a long cold winter and sold practically no wine. But we made friends with the other market traders and secured our pitches in three local villages for the summer and now at last the tourists and the sun have arrived."

Robert C. Ross 2007 2008