When first getting into wine I improved my awareness of one passion by indulging in another- Reading. As I continue to learn about wine I have used the following method.
1 - Purchase 5 good reference books.
The books I list are suggestions for my reading style, you should select books that suit your needs. I have found these were great books to start with:
1xregion (worldwide)'World Atlas of Wine' (H.Johnson & J. Robinson); another great way to get a quick bite of this info is in the annual H. Johnson 'Pocket Wine Book'
1xgrape 'Guide to Wine Grapes' (J. Robinson)
1xhistory 'Vintage: The Story of Wine' (H. Johnson)
1xfood & wine 'Wine with Food' (J. Simon)
1xvintage 'Wine Vintages' (M. Broadbent)
As you can see I have a preference for a couple of authors - remember to find the ones that you like. I like authors that provide reliable information and get to the point. Nothing is worse than bad information or over information to confuse any student. The 'Peg has some great bookstores and a pretty good library system, there is lots of information available, however I don't feel it is necessary to buy every book that hits the market. How many Atlas do you need? How many books on the Wines of Canada? Buy what you need when you need it and always keep your bookshelf moderately up-to-date.
2 - Once you know a bit find books that help you explore more.
This is where you can focus on region, grape, food & wine combos, histories, bios, trends, the list goes on & on & on & on & on...
I like the Mitchell Beazley guides for quick regional focus. Solid information, various authors and inexpensive. For food pairing Andrea Immer Robinson is excellent. Histories, bios and trends I have purchased when a whim takes me in the book store. You can read about wine everyday to stay on top in tasting notes and vintage updates, regional law changes, etc, etc, etc without touching the last 3. I recently indulged my historical curiosity in a used book shop and purchased 'Wine & War' (D.&P. Kladstrup) - a very interesting perspective of French wine during WWII. There are many other books I enjoy in this genre but you should find yours.
3 - The 'zines.
Periodicals a.k.a. magazines - whether they have advertisements or not are usually attached to critics and ratings. I always read these while holding a grain of salt in one hand and counting the advertisements with the other. Usually the information provided is up to date and accurate, harvest reports, focus on regions, grapes, wineries, winemakers, winelists. I am careful about the ratings - you may not taste the same as the person or panel who rated the wine. I have enjoyed many wine that have scored lower than 90 points and not enjoyed wines that have scored close to 100. Newspapers can often be a good source for wines that are available in your market, ours changed yesterday, looks to be interesting. Remember whether the author is local, national or international personal preference, experience and environment play a key role - more on this when I write about the first 'R' - drinking.
4 - Hang Ten
Surf the web. Winery websites are good sources of information that a winery wants you to have. Just remember they normally never tell you that their wine is bad. Magazines and authors also have good websites with good information. I use the web almost every day when it comes to wine, I have made good and bad purchases based on the information that I have come across. I obviously enjoy the blogs & am always looking for more Wpg. bloggers - if you know of any send them this way.
5 - Other Media.
A lot of fictional novels, TV Dramas/Sitcoms & Movies reference wine. Remember this info may not be completely accurate - the author may not be a wine geek. Have some fun with these and research the validity yourself - you never know what you might find.
Thus ends my opinion on reading about Wine. Sorry, now wine review today - commitments beckon.
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