Product Description
THE WINE BIBLE is like a lively course from an expert teacher, grounded deeply in the fundamentals and enriched with passionate opinions, asides, tips, anecdotes, definitions, glossaries, illustrations, maps, charts, and wine labels-everything, in fact, but the actual wine itself. Beginning with the basics of mastering wine-how to taste with focus and build a wine-tasting memory, understanding the subtle interplay of variety, vineyard, and vintner to demystifying the issue of vintages-it covers the essentials: The emotion and intrigue of Burgundy. Rhne's untamed reds. The flinty pleasures of sauvignon blanc and surprising delicacy of Spain's Riojas. Bordeaux, the largest fine wine vineyard on the globe and epitome of terroir. Fourteen Sonoma wines to know. The importance of finish. Tuscany, kingom of variable microclimates. The precise and food-friendly wines of Germany. The narrow 30-mile stretch of ambition, experimentation, and surpassing quality called Napa. Why the "punt," or indentation in a wine bottle. Australia, where cutting-edge technology meets easy, outgoing, unpretentious character. Plus Austria, New Zealand, South Africa, Portugal, and more. Eight years in the writing, Karen MacNeil's THE WINE BIBLE takes any reader, at any level of interest and sophistication, and offers the one thing guaranteed to increase his or her pleasure in wine-knowledge. It's illustrated throughout with maps, photographs, charts, wine labes, and has hundreds of boxes featuring historical tidbits, fun wine facts, and wine destinations while traveling.

Amazon.com Review
Though it drinks deep of its subject, Karen MacNeil's Wine Bible deftly avoids two traps many wine books fall into: talking down to wine novices or talking up to more experienced enophiles. The book avoids these traps through MacNeil's obvious, and infectious, love of her subject, which comes out in almost every sentence of the book, and which lets her talk about wine in a way that combines the good teacher, the trusted friend, and the expert sommelier. As director of the wine program at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley, California, MacNeil is one of the world's true experts on wine. After reading a chapter on the Burgenland, for example, you've learned about the region's sweet wines while feeling like you're actually there, toasting a glass of Cuvee Suss with the author. It is this passion that leads to describing an Italian riservas as "mesmerizing" and a Cabernet Sauvignon as having "texture like cashmere." The Wine Bible is broken into countries, hitting all of the major wine producers and most of the minor ones. Each section gives detailed descriptions of the country's wines (with chapters on individual regions when necessary), highlighting specific wine producers and individual wines, as well as talking about local foods, customs, and other tidbits that add to the reading experience. MacNeil begins her journey through the world's wine with an invaluable section on "Mastering Wine," which lets a reader get ready before uncorking separate sections. --A.J. Rathbun

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 87 reviews)

Everyone happy by Denise Haire (Spain)

5 Stars
November 17, 2009
I sent this as a gift to a friend in the US; he was very happy with it. It arrived promptly.

The Wine bible by Kyle Mendes (pullman, wa)

5 Stars
November 07, 2009
this book is a complete guide to wines of the world. It describes all the different types of wine, what makes them different in the way they're made, and flavor notes for each. If you're starting out in the wine world, or are already an experienced wine drinker, this book is for you. The only pickle I have with it is the sections on Oregon and Washington wine are small. Washington is #2 in the nation in wine production and it garners only a few pages. It's a shame, but it's still a good book.

The Wine Dictionary by Jacque Arnicar (st louis)

3 Stars
September 23, 2009
The book itself is not as useful as I hoped it would be. I am studing to get my Cerified Wine Specialist certificate and I still cannot find a lot of terms I look up. I do appreciate how quickly the person I bought it from sent it to me. I had it within a few days of ordering. Thank you very much

A Perfect Choice by Philip M., J. Baptiste (Metro Atlanta)

5 Stars
September 21, 2009
Being new to the art and skill of wine tasting I've found it's helpful to educate myself on wines. The Wine Bible will serve me well in this process.

Excellent, easy to read and informative by Jolbert (Florida)

5 Stars
August 21, 2009
Well written, funny and very informative. Easy to use whether you are looking for a particular wine or region, or if you wish to increase your knowledge of wine and all it's history, quirkiness and reasons why it is such a popular (and snobby) drink. Good value guide to have around.

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