Book Reviews

wine glass with books

  • Book Review: The Meaning of Beer by Jonny GarrettBook Review:  The Meaning of Beer by Jonny Garrett
    Beer has a long history, perhaps longer than wine, either way, both have ancient roots.  I received The Meaning of Beer by Jonny Garrett to review and was surprised at how beer has been intertwined with so many aspects of ...
  • Book Review: Jupiter’s Blood by Steven LaineBook Review: Jupiter's Blood by Steven Laine
      Jupiter’s Blood novel by Steven Laine Steven Laine is a fiction writer with WSET III, FWS, IWS, SWS, CWS, and Champagne Academy credentials.  For the 2020 harvest, Steven worked as a harvest cellarman for three months with the winemakers at Mission ...
  • Book Review: The Hidden Vineyards of Paris by Geoffrey FinchBook Review:  The Hidden Vineyards of Paris by Geoffrey Finch
    Geoffrey Finch, a Canadian born in Victoria, moved to Paris and has been sharing his passion for wine and gastronomy in France for over 40 years.  He operates a series of historic walks through Paris’s vineyards, both visible and open ...
  • Book Review: Vintage Crime by Rebecca GibbBook Review: Vintage Crime by Rebecca Gibb
    Rebecca Gibb is a Master of Wine and an award-winning wine journalist, who spends her knowledge of wine and researching for writing to educate us on the history of wine tampering from Roman times to the present.  Her newest book ...
  • Book Review: The Wine List by Grant ReynoldsBook Review: The Wine List by Grant Reynolds
    Grant Reynolds is a sommelier in the USA who worked for top restaurants that cared about the wines they served.  This helped push Grant to travel to Europe to meet with winemakers and learn more about exceptional wines. Grant’s “The ...
  • Sip and Savour: A Guide to Hosting Memorable Wine Tastings eBook Now Available for SaleSip and Savour: A Guide to Hosting Memorable Wine Tastings eBook Now Available for Sale
    Today my ebook, Sip and Savour: A Guide to Hosting Memorable Wine Tastings, is available for sale on various sites on the web.  If you are new to setting up wine tastings or need ideas of wines to select for ...
  • Book Review: Wine Trails by Lonely PlanetBook Review: Wine Trails by Lonely Planet
    If you are a wine lover like me, you probably like to go on vacation to areas that grow grapes and make wine.  Lonely Planet has produced the second edition of their Wine Trails book where they outline 52 perfect ...
  • Book Review: How To Taste by Mandy NaglichBook Review: How To Taste by Mandy Naglich
    Mandy Naglich is an Advanced Cicerone & Certified Taster and wants you to learn how to really taste your food and drink.  Her journey to learning about tasting happened through being a brewmaster and Cicerone which then spread to everything ...
  • Book Review: The Unofficial Big Lebowski Cocktail BookBook Review: The Unofficial Big Lebowski Cocktail Book
    Having an adult beverage while bowling is common, although many people you will see may have a beer.  But in some cases, you may see a cocktail.  In part we have cocktail culture expanding everywhere, but I hope we see ...
  • Book Review: Wine Time: 70+ Recipes for Simple Bites That Pair Perfectly With WineBook Review: Wine Time: 70+ Recipes for Simple Bites That Pair Perfectly With Wine
    Barbara Scott-Goodman is “a cookbook author, food writer, and content creator and an art director and designer of cookbooks, lifestyle books, food publications, videos, and websites…” and I am glad I stumbled across her book, Wine Time: 70+ Recipes for ...
  • A Request for Mocktails for Diabetics and Others in Canadian RestaurantsA Request for Mocktails for Diabetics and Others in Canadian Restaurants
    I recently noticed the book, “New Mocktails Bible” by Editors of Fox Chapel Publishing and decided to read and review it for you.  Hopefully, this book will find its way into many mixologists’ libraries of drinks.   I drink wine, beer, ...
  • Book Review: Wine Bible 3rd Edition by Karen MacNeilBook Review: Wine Bible 3rd Edition by Karen MacNeil
    Karen MacNeil is the author of two editions of her Wine Bible and now has come out with the third edition where she expands the book to cover new chapters of Great Britain, Croatia, and Israel, adding a revised Great ...
  • Book Review: VINO – The Essential Guide to Real Italian WineBook Review: VINO - The Essential Guide to Real Italian Wine
    The more you taste wine and learn about grapes, viticulture, and vinification methods, you will likely drift toward more wines that highlight terroir.  Author, Joe Campanale, with Joshua David Stein, take a deep dive into Italian wines from small artisan ...
  • Book Review: Wine Wars II by Mike VesethBook Review:  Wine Wars II by Mike Veseth
    Mike Veseth, is the editor of The Wine Economist online and is also a prolific publisher of books combining the topics of wine and economics.  From his website, I note he has published: Wine Wars (2011), Extreme Wine (2013), Money, ...
  • Book Review: Dragonvine, A Novel by Steven LaineBook Review: Dragonvine, A Novel by Steven Laine
    Steven Laine is a fiction writer with WSET III, FWS, IWS, SWS, CWS, and Champagne Academy credentials.  He writes his fiction around some aspect of wine.  His previous novel, Root Cause, covered what could happen if a new type of ...
  • Book Review: FIZZ! Champagne and Sparkling Wines of the World by Anthony RoseBook Review: FIZZ! Champagne and Sparkling Wines of the World by Anthony Rose
    Anthony Rose writes a weekly column on wine for The Independent and teaches wine in schools for the Leiths School of Food & Wine, along with writing for Decanter magazine and much more.  The goal in his book, FIZZ! Champagne ...
  • MyWinePal Wine Article Coverage and More for 2021MyWinePal Wine Article Coverage and More for 2021
    Have you ever wondered how much work you’ve done in a year on your job or hobby?  I’ve written many wine articles this year, and in previous years, but never really counted to see how many articles I’ve written and ...
  • Book Review: Malbec, A Tumultuous Wine Journey from Woe to WOW by Vanda JacksonBook Review: Malbec, A Tumultuous Wine Journey from Woe to WOW by Vanda Jackson
    April 17 was World Malbec Day, and coincidentally a few days prior, I received a copy of “Malbec, A Tumultuous Wine Journey from Woe to WOW” by Vanda Jackson. Vanda, a Canadian from Nova Scotia, is a journalist by training ...
  • Book Review: Cocktails, Mocktails and Garnishes from the Garden by Katie StryjewskiBook Review: Cocktails, Mocktails and Garnishes from the Garden by Katie Stryjewski
    Cocktail culture has been going on for quite a few years, and even with COVID, I am betting that many people are making cocktails at home now.  And looking forward to going out for cocktails with friends and family. When you ...
  • Dinner Series Celebrates the Launch of Hawksworth The CookbookDinner Series Celebrates the Launch of Hawksworth The Cookbook
    If you have ever wanted to cook like a chef, here is your chance, by owning a copy of Hawksworth The Cookbook.  You can also enjoy dining at Hawksworth sampling some of the dishes from the cookbook. The press release about ...
  • Book Review: Trillium by M.L.HoltonBook Review:  Trillium by M.L.Holton
    I enjoy reading books.  My interests, in particular, are around health & wellness, history, and food & wine.  When I can find a fictional book that covers history as a backdrop, and then add in food & wine, that makes ...
  • Book Review: “Root Cause” a Novel by Steven LaineBook Review: "Root Cause" a Novel by Steven Laine
    I have traveled to many wine-producing countries; New and Old World; Northern and Southern hemisphere, and it is always a pleasure to visit the wineries, speak with the owners about their wines, and getting a tour of the winery and vineyards.  ...
  • Book Review: 50 Ways to Love Wine More by Jim Laughren, CWEBook Review: 50 Ways to Love Wine More by Jim Laughren, CWE
    We all are at different spots on our wine journey.  Some have just stepped their toes in, while others have been swimming for many years, splashing about.  But there is always something new that we can try or learn, which ...
  • Book Review: Tasting Wine & Cheese by Adam CentamoreBook Review: Tasting Wine & Cheese by Adam Centamore
    Cheese and wine lovers unite and celebrate.  This new book “Tasting Wine & Cheese:  An Insiders Guide to Master the Principles of Pairing” gives great suggestions about wines, cheese, and pairing them together.  It is written by Mr. Adam Centamore, ...
  • Book Review: Biodynamic, Organic and Natural WinemakingBook Review: Biodynamic, Organic and Natural Winemaking
    Do you remember reading your science books in school?  How dry the material could be and uninteresting?  Well sometimes, reading a book about the science and legislation about some topic in the world can be interesting.  Case in point, is ...
  • Book Review: Excited About Provence Food and WineBook Review: Excited About Provence Food and Wine
    I dare say, I love French food and wine.  I’ve been twice to France, and in both trips, found myself spending part of my trip in Provence, enjoying seafood and sipping rose wine from the area.  So it was with ...
  • My Pairing Food & Wine For Dummies Book ReviewMy Pairing Food & Wine For Dummies Book Review
    There are Dummies books for everything, from using Microsoft Word, to growing roses, and now for pairing food & wine.  I don’t consider myself a dummy in the food & wine pairing realm, having spent many years in the South ...