The Sotheby's World Wine Encyclopedia: A Comprehensive Reference Guide to the Wines of the World

Great for studying for Sommelier exam and also great for wine buyers to learn about vineyards...and much more.

What can I say about the latest edition except bigger and better. I love the breakdown of the appellations such as the difficult French and Italian AOCs and DOCs (and DOCGs). The layout is more accessible than the Oxford though lacks the breadth and depth of the latter text. Being in the wine business for many years I must recommend this as one of the cornerstones of any wine library and the 3rd book to buy for your wine knowledge after the Oxford Companion to Wine (1st) and the World Atlas of Wine (2nd)

In the "wine-drinking" countries (which excludes the US, by about afactor of 10 per capita), a knowledge of wine at the casual level ispretty widespread. When people want to know more, they turn toan expert. This is typically someone who has spent his or her life in some part of the wine trade and therefore whose livelihood hasdepended on ability to satisfy, and accurately advise, customers.There are even highly respected standards such as the British Master of Wine examination that will establish whether a persongenuinely knows the subject and can also smell and taste all of thenuances that he claims to. (The MW exam is notoriously revealingand would undoubtedly depopulate overnight the ranks of theself-appointed US wine pundits, which may be why many of thempointedly avoid reference to it.) In the US, which lacks most ofthese traditions, any musician or sportswriter or lawyer can claimto be a wine expert and there's a fair chance they'd get a Following,self-perpetuating on the basis of popularity.Fortunately in the US, relying on such writers is not (yet) compulsory.It is possible to get books by English-language writers of very highcaliber and experience, who mostly are in other countries (such asClive Coates, Serena Sutcliffe, Remington Norman, and MichaelBroadbent). Stevenson comes from this tradition, and although hisbook is not as specialized as those of the other authors I've justnamed, it is compensatingly broad. There is a desperate need foraccessible one-volume introductory wine books. Blake Ozias's "AllAbout Wine" served this need in the US, 25 or 35 years ago, but itis badly out of date (not to mention out of print); it was a thin bookyou could absorb in a few evenings. Stevenson's is different, it isa genuine encyclopedia, combining succinct overviews of all kindsof wine-making regions (including Texas and Mexico) with furtherdepth on producers and labels in the larger regions. The compactsnapshot on Beaujolais, for example, is superb, first laying out thehistory and styles, then illustrating many producers that you will infact encounter in the shops. It distinguishes the deep, complexwines that the region can make from the bubble-gum style that hasbecome more common recently. More generally, if you found arandom bottle of wine that you were interested in, there is a decentchance you could look it up in Stevenson and learn much more.This is the best single-volume general wine reference I'm currentlyaware of. I have recommended it to several people who wanted tolearn more about wine and all of them have been very satisfied.

Tom Stevenson has nearly achieved a miracle with this comprehensive book on the 'World of Wine'. While giving information on every wine producing area (few writers do this), he has achieved a level of readability that will delight beginners as well as the knowledgeable. What is pleasing is that Stevenson takes his audience seriously, as well as the efforts of the wine growers. It is marvellous to see him list good growers in out of the way areas that are not the 'names' on most winewriters' lists (eg Fritz Becker Erben, Juffer Sonnenhur - and great wines at low prices they can be). He is also ready to tilt at the pomposity of institutions and regulations in an amusing style. For me the best wine book, along with Remington Norman's "Rhone Renaissance", of the last 5 years and like that book a joy to read. If there is a criticism it is that he couldn't have been allowed to give us more information. For example while he is amazingly helpful on Cru Bourgeois of the Medoc, there are few notes on the individual growers of say Tuscany,California or the Rhone. But as I said this is a book that has attempted a great deal and achieved 95% of that objective, and thus truly deserves the title of Encyclopedia.

Sotheby's encyclopedia includes detailed maps, photos, diagrams, wine labels, ratings, and just about anything anyone would want to know about wine in a very user-friendly format. Absolutely the best wine book available.