[.ca] Red Wine For Dummies (ISBN 0764550128)

From Amazon.com:
The authors of Wine for Dummies and White Wine for Dummies have produced a handy primer on the fundamentals of red wine. After a brief introduction to the varieties of grapes and the seven classic types of red wine, the reader (and taster!) is introduced to the world's greatest offerings, including less recognized wines from Chile and Australia. The familiar Dummies-style "Part of Tens" includes 10 wine-tasting exercises using affordable vintages.

Writing you can use:
What a joy. This quick, fun read is well worth your time. Wine for Dummies is like having your own personal expert with a sense of humor. I live in Europe and applied this book to my "studies" of wine by buying bottles and tasting. The lessons in the back are fun and fantastic. Good reading and tasting!

Great Guide for the beginner:
Tired of the fact that you can't get straightforward answers to the questions that beginners have? This is the book for you. The authors don't pretend to be exhaustive, but rather they provide an overview that can impart a significant amount of material quickly and understandably.

Easy and logical to follow:
Liked the presentaion of the information - like most of the Dummy series, the book is well researched and useful even as a quick reference or to read through cover to cover.

You get what you pay for:
I must start by saying that I am a snob. I am also a lover of wines of all types. But I am NOT a "Wine Snob." I am not impressed by fancy talk, great names or, especially, high price tags. That being said, I think this book has a LOT of good information in it, but anyone who buys this book is selling themselves short, and a good many people will outgrow this volume in short order. Wine can be a "Highbrow" and intimidating subject, but that veneer has been eroding steadily over the past few decades as the Wine industry has been trying to increase its market share vis a vis beer, and the supply-side of the market has expanded exponentially. The fact is, wine is easy to enjoy and simple to understand at its basics,and the wine snobs of old have known this for quite some time. Great wines are affordable by most these days, availability is better than it has EVER been, and information about wines is practically dripping off each bottle. All of the info you need to understand the wine world is included in the "Big name" wine books these days, and it is as accessible as ever. I would recommend spending a bit more money for a new or used copy of the wine atlases of Oz Clarke or Hugh Johnson, (check online auctions)and every couple of years purchase a buying guide by the same authors. You will have much more information for the money, it will serve you longer, and you don't have to identify yourself as a "Dummy." Frankly, I think the term is relative and ought not be self applied. At any rate, you shouldn't be paying someone else to lable yourself as such, regardless of how well the moniker fits.

Great Intro - but tune those olefactory senses:
As a complete beginner to the subject of red wine this is a great yet simple introduction to the major red wine and grape types. There is no bias evident in the authors assessment and there is good guidance to the best value wines. The only downside is the somewhat superior references to the various scents found in the wines. Recommended.