Top 10 Wines Italy

Want a good, fast easy read to learn about the top wineries and wines from each region in Italy in 140 pages or so? This is the book for you. Vincent Gasnier is a talented sommelier with a knack for writing about wines in a very interesting and compelling manner, making for great reading. He's written a series of 4 brief, but informative overview books, covering the top wines from France, Italy, Australia and New Zealand, and the United States. All are easy reading, ideal for reading in short bursts of time as well as informative and enjoyable. This book on Italian wines offers a brief historical overview of wines from all of Italy's diverse regions. Then, it presents a brief section on each region, including a general description of the region, the winemakers, wineries and top wines. The top 10 lists can take the form of multiple lists such as Top Brilliant Barolos and Barbarescos, Top 10 Fine Italian Reds, Top 10 Fabulous Italian Whites, Top 10 Great Italian Wine Houses, Top 10 Magnificent Italian Sparkling Wines, Italy's Greatest Celebration Wines, Top 10 Super Tuscans, Top 10 Best Kept Secrets in Italian Wines, and many others in addition to the Top 10 wines in each region. It also features brief (2 to 4 page) sections on Wine and Food Matching, Buying and Storing Wine, Wine Tasting, and one on Wines Styles, a popular approach gaining in usage that breaks wines into category profiles. For example, white wines are classified into the following categories: 1). Crisp dry light bodied; aromatic to flowery, dry to medium-sweet; tangy or steely medium bodied; and full-bodied, rich flavored. Grapes typically make wines in one of these categories (although chardonnay grapes, for example, may overlap two categories depending on the winemaking style employed). Generally someone who likes a certain style of wine might appreciate the appeal of other grapes making wines in this same style or category. This section also lists the Italian wines that would apply to each of these categories. I highly recommend this book for anyone seeking a basic overview of Italian wines. The author has a nice ability to explore a topic briefly, yet still provide valuable information. Gasnier is one of my favorite wine authors. If there were an award for adequately conveying a useful overview of Italian wines - along with wine information in general - in the least number of pages, Gasnier would surely win it. When one considers the breath of Italian wines and regions, that the author was able to effectively convey an overview in this size book amounts to an incredible feat, but he achieves it. I am pretty knowledgeable about wine and still found this book very well done and interesting. Highly recommended, as is the entire 4 book series. Mark Vincent