Wine Blog

Spanish Wine: A Pocket Guide
Here is a quick, fun and easy guide to the world of Spanish Wine. Written by an author who has immersed himself in Spanish culture and its wine over the past fifteen years, this book will give anyone interested in the subject an enjoyable introduction to this fascinating member of the wine world. Important features include: Brief history. Easy-to-follow rundown on Spanish Wine. Basics on understanding Spanish Wine. Wine regions listed by wine types (reds, whites, sparkling wine, sherry). Fun descriptive introduction to each region. Map of each region. Overview of all major wine regions (D.O.) and many minor ones (V.T.). Up-to-date rating of D.O. vintages. Winery-by-winery listings: includes wines, price range, personal recommendations and website addresses. Local gastronomy – insights into the foods of each region. Local anecdotes – fun and interesting facts about this wonderful country and its wine. Glossary of terms. Alphabetical listing of all wines mentioned.

Customer Review: Spanish wine
I have been to Spain a couple of times and this book is pretty informative and accurate from my experience.

Customer Review: A Spanish Wine Travelogue
It appears the author published this guide himself, which might have been necessary due to the folksy conversdational style in which it was written. An uninformed reader would likely lack confidence in the superficial evaluations of the recognized wine regions and the numerous producers. However, Murdock’s solidly positive comments on those wines I have actually sampled so far match my own opinions, which leads me to believe his evaluations are really quite sound. The book is easy to use and should allow me to discover additional wines I might enjoy, which is the main reason why one buys this kind of guide. There can be no doubt that Spanish wines represent great value and provide interesting taste and style variances from the better publicized California, French, Italian, and Australian varietals. On the whole, this guide is a very goof value.

First Big Crush: The Down and Dirty on Making Great Wine Down Under
The story behind the bottle, First Big Crush is Eric Arnold’s wild account of his year immersing himself in all things wine…and somehow not winding up in rehab.

Never having held a meaningful job for very long (and getting fired from most of them), Eric Arnold heads to New Zealand — to Allan Scott Wines — seeking adventure and hoping to learn a little bit about wine. What could be better than working outside in the fresh air and drinking wine all day? Before he knows it, he is dirty, wet, cold, and at the mercy of a tank of wine that just might explode and take him with it. So begin Eric’s adventures in the world of wine. He gets sunburned, sore, and drunk — and then does it all over again the next day.

First Big Crush is a story that is as outrageous as it is compelling. Here are tales of first pressings, pruning, and tasting competitions. There are also rowdy nights at the local pub, girls, meat pies, girls, rugby, and tales of hunting wild pig. Along the way, each step of the winemaking process is explained in a way that humans can actually understand. Almost against his will, Eric becomes an expert.

Customer Review: A fraternity boy’s drunken rant
Trash. I cannot believe how such a great topic was ruined by Eric Arnold’s immature writing and drinking. I was so looking forward to a wonderful informative book on NZ winemaking, but I couldn’t get past Eric’s being drunk all the time and talking like a freshman frat boy! Grow up.

Customer Review: Read the “dirty” in more than one sense
Eric Arnold spent a year in New Zealand’s Marlborough winemaking region. Years earlier he spent a day touring the area: “And from my very first sip of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc at ten-thirty or so on that morning, I knew it, too — I was tasting something special. My mouth zipped and zinged, and though I couldn’t describe the flavors I was tasting, I was sure of only one thing: I wanted more. I was hammered by noon, with five wineries still to go. At one point I stole the tour guide’s microphone in the van and started singing karaoke — “The Tracks of My Tears” by Smokey Robinson — even though I didn’t know the words. I might’ve taken off my shirt, too, but I don’t remember. From winery to winery and sip to sip, the wines just got better and better. From the time I got back home to Brooklyn, whenever I was in a wine shop I either bought wine from New Zealand or asked for something similar. Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was my new Hogue.”

The memory of that firts Sauvignon Blanc sticks in Arnold’s memory:

“For a few years after that trip I was still guzzling whatever New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc I could find at night, and spending my daylight hours working the copy desk at a small business magazine. It was better than working for the Nazi devil woman at PBS, but the same could probably be said for cleaning up monkey shit at the zoo (which, I imagine, is very similar to working at PBS). So out of a desire to drink more, work less, and maybe satisfy a little curiosity, up sprang the idea of just throwing myself into the lifestyle: getting a job at a winery and writing a book about it.”

Arnold initially knows nothing about winery work, but you have to admire his cheerful attitude, no matter what reality throws at him. He learns about rugby, pig hunting, and hard working rural New Zealanders. He finds two particularly difficult areas: the finer points of pitchforking and pruning winter vines in the cold fields. He concludes:

“Vineyard work sucks…I have no idea why, but many people who drink wine think that making it is some sort of relaxed, cushy lifestyle. And I don’t understand it , because I’ve never eaten a juicy steak and imagined how romantic and luxurious a life I’d have if I started raising cattle in Wyoming. Similarly, I’ve never met anyone who got a massage and moved to Sweden or shot heroin and moved to Afghanistan.”

Arnold is excellent at describing the difficulties and joys of working in a vineyard and in a winery. His language may be a bit racy for some readers, his humor a little too broad. Overall, I found the substance worth a few “Oh, grow up” moments.

California wine country getaways for two – Newsday

Newsday

California wine country getaways for two Newsday News Newsday > News Content Preview Newsday 7 day/Optimum Online ® subscribers click here for full access Not a Newsday or Optimum Online ® subscriber? Click here California wine country getaways for two Published: January 26, 2012 12:38 PM By The … and more »

The Art and Science of Wine

How wine is made, from field to cellar to bottle.

Great wine is a complex blend of nature, art and science. In this updated new edition of a classic book, the “how and why” of a wine’s creation are examined in detail.

Acclaimed wine writers James Halliday and Hugh Johnson analyze the art and science behind the winemaking process. They start with the fundamental role of terroir the complex combination of characteristics that give a wine its personality. The latest developments in pruning and irrigation are then covered, along with the recent emergence of vineyards in cooler regions and the rise of organic wines.

Wine production in the cellar is detailed for nine specific styles, from light-bodied whites to full-bodied reds, along with sweet, sparkling and fortified varieties. The authors present the choices facing vintners at every step. The science of maturation is discussed, along with the industry’s raging debate over the merits of natural cork, plastic cork and screw cap seals. The book also covers:

• A year in the vineyard
• Quantity vs. quality
• National attitudes and regional characteristics
• Mechanization
• The chemistry and analysis of wine.

The Art and Science of Wine is filled with full color photographs and illustrations. With text that reflects the latest winemaking technology and discoveries, this lively book is both accessible and highly informative.

Customer Review: Beautiful, a steal
This is a beautiful, steal of a book (some independent sellers are offering <30% of the price Barnes and Noble wanted when I originally bought it the first time!). If you're like me and really want to know the intricacies of wine production (not just tasting notes, etc.--which this book also contains), this is a handy and educating book to have. Yes, it is paperback, but the front cover is a thick, glossy card stock and the pages inside are glossy as well. Nice for a coffee table or a bookshelf, but even better for your brain!