Wine Talk: An Enthusiast's Take on the People, the Places, the Grapes, and the Styles

(Hardback)

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Description

InWine Talk, seasoned wine professional Raymond Blake, who has been writing about wine for twenty-five years, caters to those who want to drink theirwinewithout ceremony but with some engagement. For those who have been put offbyhighfalutin terminology and forbidding ritual. For those who want the message simplified but not dumbed down and for those who love a glass ofwinebut for whom technical details are a turn off. Through Blake's well-told vinous tales and anecdotes, readers will learn effortlessly about a topic that often appears a mystery to so many. Sections include:
* The fascinating process of vineyard work
* All about bubbly wines (champagne and other)
* Legacy wines, i.e. Sherry, Port, and Madeira
* Wines from Down Under
* The business of food and wine matching
* Wine gadgets and accessories
* And more!

This book makes the perfect gift for those looking to wet their palate on various wine topics.

Reviews

"Raymond Blake is an exquisite writer on wineand probably anything else he would care to apply his lyrical command of the language to and he can godeep and talk the talk with the best of them, but he can also pull back on the reins and use his considerable knowledge to more mainstream effect withouteven a scintilla of condescension. InWine TalkBlake has written his most page-turningly accessible book. Witty, informative, reminiscent of Jay McInerney'sterrific essays on wine,Wine Talkranges so agreeably and even breezily over so many aspects of wine, from viticulture to regions to exploring new vinousexperiences, this is simply one of the most pleasurable books on wine I have ever read. Blake abandons the pedagogy and goes straight for the heart of whatwe all love about wine: its mystery, its soul. What an exultant joy we have here inWine Talk. Blake has come down out of the clouds and vouchsafed us hoipolloi a book that speaks to all of us who love a glass of wine."
Rex Pickett, author ofSidewaysand the upcomingThe Archivist

A really new voice is always welcome in the chorus of wine-lovers who feel the urge to write about their delight in the stuff. Perhaps it helps to be Irish;Raymond has that way with words, and that original voice. Welcome, fellow-sufferer!
Hugh Johnson OBE, the worlds bestselling wine writer

"Raymond's book oozes with so much personal experience (both delightfully hazy and precise) and feisty opinion that it is easy to forget that this is actually atremendous Global Introduction to Wine. It's just that he misses out the boring stuff but gives you both barrels on what's fun and interesting, and then soaksthe lot in the happy drinking remembrances of one of Ireland's finest wine men.
Oz Clarke OBE, world renowned wine writer

Author Bio

Raymond Blake is a writer and the wine editor ofFood & Winemagazine in Ireland. He is the author ofBreakfast in Burgundy:A Hungry Irishman in the Belly of FranceandIn Black and White: A History of Rowing at Trinity College, Dublin.