Decanter World Wine AwardsNew French wine book for children launched
- Friday 17 September 2010
Vignes et Vins: Un Monde a Decouvrir (Vines and Wines: A World to Discover) by Sandrine Duclos and Cécile Gallineau aims to tell 7 to12-year-olds how lucky they are to live in a country where the culture of the vine plays such an important role.
With the help of illustrations it explains the cycle of vine-growing and the cultural role that wine plays in France, and tells the story of wine from the Romans to the present day.
The book was launched this week at Chateau Fonroque in Saint Emilion, a biodynamic property owned by Alain Moueix.
A spokesperson for Moeuix told Decanter.com he was interested in the project because of its emphasis on the natural side of wine-making, and its ‘green’ values – the books have all been printed and bound without the use of any glue or printing varnishes.
Editor Emmanuelle Garcia, whose idea the book was, told Decanter.com that France’s draconian anti-alcohol laws meant children weren’t learning about wine as they should.
‘We felt there were increasing gaps in the knowledge being transmitted to our children about the cultural role of wine.
‘There has been no negative reaction so far, but we will see… I explain each time that we are not promoting wine itself, but explaining a culture. We have really worked hard at ensuring the layout and language of the book is clear. This is about the heritage of France.’
An initial run of 200,000 copies has been printed, with plans to export the book to Quebec and other French-speaking countries. The publisher, Editions Mama Josefa, is also considering an English translation.
Have your say!
Jean Gauche
December 12 11:12
Where can I buy this books on line?
Diego Reos
November 10 15:06
IS THERE A DIGITAL VERSION OF THE BOOK? WILL LOVE TO TAKE A LOOK, OR EVEN CONSIDER TRANSLATION INTO SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE AS WELL, AS THERE ARE IMPORTANT WINE MAKING REGIONS WERE KIDS SPEAK THESE LANGUAGES. I APPRECIATE THE INITIATIVE OF MORE RESPONSIBLE WINE REGION COMMUNITIES, AS YOU MENTIONED, REDUCING THAT GAP!
Bridget Duffy
October 04 06:13
please translate into English soon! We want to give as a gift to our friends one year old daughter for her birthday! They are wine makers in Sonoma and want to name the wine after her - Leighton!
colin
September 21 14:51
Great idea, let's educate our children into more responsible ways of using alcohol, particularly wine. Knowledge and moderation are the keys. As a wine writer living in Spain I'm interested to note that this book follows one with a similar intention written in Spanish and English last year in La Rioja, Saturnino Starling In The Land Of Wine, by Carlos Baena Preysler and illustrated by Judith Sáenz de Tejada.
NB to David who has also commented: the ISBN number of the French children's wine book can be found on the website of the publishers.