Vines, Grapes & Wines: The Wine Drinker's Guide to Grape Varieties

One minor caveat is that the book doesn't seem to have been revised since it first appeared in 1986. So some of the "sociological" parts of the text (e.g., where specific varietals are being grown, and comments on their popularity) are becoming increasingly out of date, especially for the New World. But it's kind of interesting to be reminded that in the mid-1980s Syrah (aka Shiraz) enjoyed only "very limited popularity" (p. 90).


Deep perspective   October 5, 2001
 18 out of 18 found this review helpful

Jancis Robinson has long been one of the established authorities on wine. I once watched her and Oz Clark in a wine tasting 'contest' on television. They were an even match with scores of almost 100% on vineyard, price, year, quality etc. I've also watched Robinson's television series on wines and her knowledge and enthusiasm seem to know no bounds.

In 'Vines, Grapes and Wines' Jancis Robinson puts this enthusiasm and knowledge to good use, producing 280 large format pages of unadulterated information and pictures. It's clear she wants her readers to know not just about the wine itself, but about the region, the soil, the climate, the vintners, the wine's history.

This is not an cozy weekend read, it's much more a reference book that gives both pleasure and information, but well worth the investment for any serious wine buff.


Detailed and pretty interesting   March 1, 2000
 8 out of 10 found this review helpful

This book is incredibly informative. I often re-read sections because you cannot absorb all the information at once. Robinson's writing is clear, but sometimes the details (especially the history sections) are dry. I think of this as almost a text book but a readable text book with great pictures!