Best new wine books reviewed (Autumn 2014)

Natural Wine Isabelle Legeron MW Cico Books, Â£16.99 One of the wine worldâs most controversial subjects currently is natural wine. Isabelle Legeron, a Master of Wine, has nailed her colours firmly to the mast as founder of the RAW wine fair, and in her new book attempts to shed light on the subject. Legeron agrees ânaturalâ isnât the ideal word but says itâs hard to find a better alternative for âwine from vineyards that are farmed organically at the very least and which is produced without adding or removing anything during vinification apart from a dash of sulphites at most at bottlingâ. She covers some useful ground, particularly the often glossed-over subject of additives, the health benefits of natural wine and the varying standards of certification. Colourful photos and a series of essays from natural winemakers on subjects as diverse as using horses to plough their vineyards to the virtues of making bread with freshly ground grains (Legeron draws parallels with foods such as artisan cheeses) engagingly break up the text. Coverage of winemakers a bit patchy if youâre after a comprehensive guide to whoâs who in the natural winemaking world (this is an introduction to the subject, not a reference book), but thereâs a helpful âstarter kitâ of wines Legeron recommends to natural wine newbies, including a particularly clear explanation of orange wines. Not everyone will agree with her pronouncement that âtruly faulty wines are few and far betweenâ â sheâs inclined to gloss over the issue of consistency â and her habit of quoting herself can be trying, but thereâs no doubting her passion for her subject. If youâve already taken a stance on natural wine, I doubt this book will win you round. But if you genuinely want to understand the difference in philosophy natural winemaking involves, itâs an invaluable introduction. Fiona Beckett Wines of South America: The Essential Guide Evan Goldstein MS University of California Press, Â£27.95 As its name implies, the latest offering from this prolific author, educator and Master Sommelier from California is a precise and concise guide to South American wine. Goldstein uses a good portion of the bookâs 276 pages to describe the major wine regions and their most important producers. The valleys and wineries of Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay are well covered, with analysis of their history, regional styles and key producers. Goldstein writes: âOn my initial visits, I would taste and note that were there some very good wines, many good wines, a bevy of average-quality wines and a large number of fair to poor bottles. With each visit, that would change. Indeed, the overall quality level of South American wines has dramatically improved. Not only were the quantity of fair-to-poor wines increasingly smaller, but the volume of very good wines was way up and an ever-increasing number of special âwines of placeâ and terroir-specific efforts was rapidly emerging.â Goldstein also gives attention to areas that are rarely discussed, such as Chenin Blanc in the tropical state of Lara in Venezuela, Palomino growing in the chalky soils of Pichincha in Ecuador, or Cabernet Sauvignon in the mountainous BoyacÃ¡ department in Colombia. Although brief, this section of lesser-known countries may be revealing to the most curious readers. Goldstein feels his book is intended for two types of audience: wine trade members looking for a one-stop resource for South America with specific references for each country, saving them from having to search online; and the passionate wine consumer â knowledge-hungry wine lovers who want to learn about the places, their grapes and the producers for use at home or when travelling. The book is a clear and entertaining read, but also with informed opinions from an author who seems to know the region well â the tourism and food sections at the end of the book are both fun and very instructive. Whatâs missing, however, are more pictures and maps, and the few that are there are quite poor. Nevertheless, Wines of South America covers all the bases and will be helpful for those who want to understand this diverse wine continent. Patricio Tapia The Best White Wine on Earth: The Riesling Story Stuart Pigott Stewart Tabori & Chang, Â£15.99 Stuart Pigott is a prophet, and like prophets do famously, he long went unrecognised in England, his native land. As his gospel was Riesling and its wines, he emigrated to Germany at the end of the 1980s, settling first in Bernkastel in the Mosel Valley, and later in Berlin. Now it seems he shuttles between the German capital and New York. he has published many books, most of them in German. This, his latest book, is calculated to spread the word in the US. Pigott has been preaching Riesling for more than 30 years. his tone is engaging, and his teachings appealing. The weight in this book, I suspect, has been deliberately placed on North America, but there are lessons for all of us, as many (myself included) may not be familiar with the Riesling winemakers on the far side of the Atlantic. New to me were the stars of the Finger Lakes, but Pigott also dwells on top winemakers in Ohio, New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania before turning his attentions to Canada and the West Coast. We also hear about Australasiaâs Riesling growers, many of whose names are familiar. But Pigott always has recommendations of a few âfunky wine geeksâ doing crazy things and currently riding high in his heart. Pigott reaches Europe at the end of the book. Austria comes first but he finishes with his first love: the Mosel Valley. He praises the established leaders in the Wachau, but digs out new boys such as Peter Malberg and Martin Muthenthaler, or unjustly neglected growers in the Danube Valley like Sepp Matler or Ilse Maier. The same balance is struck with Germany, so that he points out not only the well-known leaders, but also Joachim Flick or Fred Prinz as the new forces in the Rheingau and Volker Gies and Boris Kranz in the Pfalz. Martin Tesch makes funky wines, and so is highlighted in the pages Pigott devotes to the Nahe. The Riesling Story can be enjoyed profitably by all wine lovers, as Pigott has sprinkled it with his wit and wisdom about wine in general which, despite a heavy transatlantic edit, still manages to come out in his unmistakable voice. But I get an impression that he is leading a successful cult over there, and it might be that he is preaching to the converted. Giles MacDonogh Land and Wine: The French Terroir Charles Frankel University of Chicago Press, Â£19.50 Charles Frankel is a French geologist, so his study of terroir is dominated by soil types more than by other factors such as altitude or exposure, although he certainly doesnât ignore them. He embarks on a tour of 10 French wine regions, beginning with the geologically most ancient (Anjou). Itâs an agreeable journey, aimed at what one might call the informed but curious wine lover. Frankelâs authoritative geological explanations are often pushed into the background by history, anecdotes, winery visits, and digressions on dinosaurs, fossils and botrytis. A pity, though, that the photographs are so poorly reproduced. But thereâs a thesis here: that âterroirâ, broadly defined, influences wine aromas, flavours and structures. This is not novel: most wine lovers will agree that Kimmeridgian limestone gives Chablis much of its typicity, and that the three soil types in Sancerre usually deliver different styles of wines. But Frankel goes further. Examining Alsaceâs grands crus, he can provide a correlation between soil and wine type from different sectors of a vineyard. He also manages to provide basic, and simplistic, aromatic descriptors to summarise the differences between the grands crus of Vosne-RomanÃ©e. All this ignores the input of the farmer and winemaker: grape varieties, clones, density, harvesting dates, maceration temperatures, yeast types, wood-ageing â all these affect aroma and flavour too. Itâs helpful to know about geology but itâs far from the whole story. Nor is there much evidence to suggest that root systems can convey soil minerals into the grape and hence the wine. This is essentially a travelogue focusing occasionally on soil and geology, but with little new or interesting to say about wine. How many readers will be enlightened to learn that âCorton red wine is served during grand occasions and in top restaurantsâ? The translation is often weird, with climat rendered as âclimateâ and âspikingâ a neologism for adding selected yeasts. There are errors (Pomerol has no grands crus) but they are minor. And is chocolate cake really a good match with ChÃ¢teau Lafite? Frankel writes breezily and enjoyably, but hasnât convinced me that this is an essential addition to my wine library. Stephen Brook Jura Wine Wink Lorch Wine Travel Media, Â£25 The wine cognoscenti has always been drawn to this thin strip of rugged vineland between Burgundy and Switzerland, but only in the last few years have the wines of Jura started reaching a wider audience. Wink Lorchâs book is academic enough to satisfy the expert, while detailed sections on local gastronomy and hotels are there for the wine-loving tourist. Donât go to the Jura without it. Adam Lechmere Madeira: the Mid-Atlantic Wine Alex Liddell Hurst, Â£16.99 The 1998 biography of âone of the worldâs greatest winesâ, now reissued. Starts with the appearance of Madeira on 14th century maps, with new material taking us through to the current disputes over nomenclature and quality control. Statistical appendices cover every aspect of production. Dauntingly academic and dry, but its exhaustive detail and unparalleled research makes it the definitive work on Madeira. Adam Lechmere French Wine: An Illustrated Miscellany Bernard Pivot Flammarion, Â£22.50 From Beaujolais to barrels, taking in everything from Haut-Brion, Loire, labels, monks, sex, corkscrews and Krug, this richly illustrated collection of anecdote and reportage is nothing if not eclectic. Pivotâs lavishly illustrated canter through the archives is full of delights. Adam Lechmere The Wine Savant: A Guide to the New Wine Culture Michael Steinberger Norton, Â£18.99 The ex-Slate columnist in fine form. Opinionated (âtime has done nothing to dull my hostility toward Sauvignon Blancâ) and authoritative, this is aimed squarely at the aspirational American wine lover, with sections on buying foreign wine (âcan be intimidatingâ) and acronym explanations (OWC: âoriginal wooden caseâ). Lightish fare, but fun. Adam Lechmere

Best new wine books reviewed (Autumn 2014)

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