[.ca] Great Wine Made Simple: Straight Talk from a Master ... (ISBN 076790477X)

From Amazon.com:
About one-third of the way through Andrea Immer's Great Wine Made Simple, the author recounts an anecdote that could serve as the book's theme--alligator, rabbit, and squab were all introduced to her the same way: "Tastes like chicken." And as demonstrated by Immer, who went from debentures to de Rothschild when she quit Morgan Stanley to eventually oversee the 50,000-bottle cellar at Manhattan's famed Windows on the World, the leap from pigeon to Pichon-Lalande is analogous: teaching novice wine drinkers what to expect is what her book, aptly subtitled "Straight Talk from a Master Sommelier", is all about. With emphasis on her "Big Six" varietals--Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon--this "Immer-sion" class of tastings lets amateur sippers differentiate the typical qualities of each, while illustrating wine terms such as dry, crisp, oaky, and tannic. Practical advice abounds; one chapter devotes itself to finding useful info on a wine label while avoiding "Stupid Label Tricks," those bits of puffery or unfamiliar flavors (how many have actually tasted lychee or red currant?) that can be confusing the average buyer. And her "Flavor Map" concept--dividing the wine world into three climate zones--eschews memorization in favor of some rudimentary geography. Throughout, her pronunciation guides are accurate and personable ("If you're pronouncing 'Riesling' right you have to smile."); and she provides a great postgraduate curriculum of buying strategies, including the pros and cons of wine shops versus your nearest Costco; and a consumer advisory about restaurant's "award-winning wine lists." --Tony Mason

Money well-spent!:
I took several books out of our library about wine (books by Oz Clarke, Kevin Zraly and some other master sommelier). This book was not one of them. I bought Andrea Immer's book because I was dissatisfied with the other books and I read great reviews about it on Amazon. Let me tell you... this book has exceeded my expectations! The best part of the book is that it helps wine novices place a taste with a word typically used to describe wine. For example, she helps you set up a wine tasting so that you can learn to identify "oaky","sweet","cripy","tannic" etc. It's fun to go to a wine bar armed with this information because you will learn your own tastes and preferences and select wines that match what you like. It's a great gift!

Masterful Insight For All:
The other reviewers here have been most eloquent in describing the varied merits of Ms. Immer's book, so I can only add this bit of simple advice for the "skimmers" of such reviews: A master and lover of her craft, Ms. Immer (in clear, captivating text) lays the foundation for a true understanding of wine, one that we all can learn from. If you want point ratings and "Dummies" categories, please skip this volume. BUT if you want to understand and celebrate the wine you that you taste, enjoy and purchase, and if you want to embark on a lifelong journey of wine appreciation (regardless of your prior experience) then by all means purchase this fine book. It is a wonderful companion for any true wine enthusiast.

A great buy:
Completely through dumb luck, I picked up a bottle of wine for a recent dinner party that was not only delicious in its own right, it made the food taste better. I'd never had that experience before, but it was enough to make me want to learn more about wine, so that I could intentionally pick good wine/food combinations in the future. I'm so glad this was the first book on the subject that I ordered. Beside being a fun read, the author does a wonderful job of educating the reader, without seeming pretentious or preachy. Although she begins with the assumption that you nothing, I can't imagine even an already knowledgable wine enthusiast not learning something from this - it's packed with good information. At the end of each discussion section, she includes a 'how to have a wine test' guide, beginning with comparisons of the six most common wine styles, and progressing to tastings on wine characteristics (oaky verses steel barrel, etc) and wines from lesser known grapes. Also included are basic hints for choosing wines, predicting a wine's flavor, and pairing wine with food. Not only would I buy this book again, I've recommended it to several friends - in my opinion, it's a can't-miss-purchase on the subject.

The best wine book I've read!:
Since catching the wine bug a few years ago, I've read five or six books that survey the world of wine. This one is my clear favorite. No one else does a better job of teaching you what to expect when you open up a bottle from a region or varietal you've never tried before. While most books provide lists of grapes and regions and expect you to memorize the style of wines made from each, Ms. Immer presents a system for predicting how a wine will taste based solely on information on the label and basic geographical knowledge. Her "Flavor Map" approach is innovative, intuitive, and highly accurate. I also thoroughly enjoy the tasting exercises, which offer a hands-on way to compare and contrast different styles. This is homework I can deal with! My only critique is that I would have liked to see more space devoted to grapes beyond the so-called Big Six. But this book is so good, I can't bring myself to take off a star for that.

At War with the Wine Snob:
Here it is at last! Andrea Immer, herself a master sommelier, has written the definitive guide to selecting, buying, and ultimately, enjoying wine. Her approach is unique: limit her discussions to the Big Six varietals: riesling, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, pinot noir, merlot, and cabernet sauvignon, which together account for the vast majority of wine sales in the world today, and proceed accordingly. (Hopefully, in future editions, she will include more discussion on those fast-rising varietals pinot grigio and shiraz.) She proceeds through discussions of tasting and paring with food, as does any other good wine-buying guide. What makes Ms. Immer's approach unique is that she MAKES WINE FUN!!! In doing this, she's going against the grain of centuries of wine snobbery and elitism. She believes wine should be demystified and its joys revealed TO EVERYONE, not just a select few who can afford $50-$100 a bottle. She does this by including unique wine tasting exercises, such as pairing wines with their opposites to give a clear understanding of the concept. (Example: dry riesling tasted with sweet riesling so the reader can immediatly see the difference.) She also includes plenty of names of sample wines you can test with, including many low-priced bottles. In short, her vision, clarity, and above all, SENSE OF HUMOR make this a must-read for everyone interested in wine who detests snobbery and pretension.