The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • The Oxford Companion to Wine
  • A Most Incredible Wine Reference Book
  • Brilliant
  • Oxford Companion is excellent
  • THE wine encyclopedia
The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

ReferenceReference | Subjects | Books | Almanacs & Yearbooks | Atlases & Maps | Books on CD | Books on Cassette | Business Skills | Careers | Catalogs & Directories | Consumer Guides | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Education | Encyclopedias | Etiquette | Foreign Languages | Fun Facts | Genealogy | General | Job Hunting | Large Print | Law | Publishing & Books | Quotations | Spanish-Language Reference | Study Guides | Test Prep Central | Words & Language | Writing
SpiritsSpirits | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Wine & WinemakingWine & Winemaking | Wine | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
ReferenceReference | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
All TitlesAll Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Cooking, Food & WineCooking, Food & Wine | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ReferenceReference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:
  1. The World Atlas of Wine The World Atlas of Wine
  2. The New Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, Fourth Edition The New Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, Fourth Edition
  3. Windows on the World Complete Wine Course: 2007 Edition (Windows on the World Complete Wine Course) Windows on the World Complete Wine Course: 2007 Edition (Windows on the World Complete Wine Course)
  4. How to Taste: A Guide to Enjoying Wine How to Taste: A Guide to Enjoying Wine
  5. The Wine Bible The Wine Bible

ASIN: 0198609906

Amazon.com

With more than 3,000 entries on every aspect of wine from vine pests to specific grapes, this hefty tome has something for both the seasoned connoisseur and novice alike. Edited by one of today's premier wine columnists, the work covers all aspects of wine, travelling back in time to early Greece to examine wine's role in Dionysian revels, then returning to today's wine centers to explore all aspects of wine appreciation. A full third of the book is dedicated to specific wines and wine-producing regions. All those technical terms you've heard and puzzled over at tastings are clearly explained, making this the perfect reference for newcomers to the world of oenology.

For the true connoisseur, The Oxford Companion offers detailed information on the history of the vintner's art, as well as a plethora of details on everything from climate effects on vine disease to the function of the second malolactic fermentation. If you buy only one wine book, this should be it.

Book Description

Published in 1994 to worldwide acclaim, the first edition of Jancis Robinson's seminal volume immediately attained legendary status, winning every major wine book award including the Glenfiddich and Julia Child/IACP awards, as well as writer and woman of the year accolades for its editor on both sides of the Atlantic. Combining meticulously-researched fact with refreshing opinion and wit, The Oxford Companion to Wine presents almost 4,000 entries on every wine-related topic imaginable, from regions and grape varieties to the owners, connoisseurs, growers, and tasters in wine through the ages; from viticulture and oenology to the history of wine, from its origins to the present day. Now exhaustively updated, this third edition incorporates the very latest international research to present almost 400 new entries on topics ranging from globalization and the politics of wine to brands, precision viticulture, and co-fermentation. Hundreds of entries have undergone major revision, among them yeast, barrel alternatives, climate change, and virtually all wine regions; and useful lists and statistics are appended, including controlled appellations and their permitted grape varieties, and wine production and consumption by country. Illustrated with maps of every important wine region in the world, useful charts and diagrams, and stunning colour photographs, this Companion is unlike any other wine book, offering an understanding of wine in all of its wider contexts - notably historical, cultural, and scientific - and serving as a truly companionable point of reference into which any wine-lover can dip and browse.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars The Oxford Companion to Wine.......2007-09-10

This is an excellent resource for any topic related to wine. It is well researched and written, containing a wealth of information for any wine enthusiast. It is easy to navigate and read, making it highly recommended. Enjoy!

5 out of 5 stars A Most Incredible Wine Reference Book.......2007-08-08

This book is truly incredible and can best be described as an encyclopedia of wine. Printed on 816 pages of fine paper with sporadic full color photographs and pencil drawings, it is atypical of other books on wine. There no novice section, stemware identification guide or chapter on building your own cellar. This is the book you want in you hands to aid in locating those rare areas of production and defining little known terms. Robinson draws on approximately 150 contributors, highly qualified experts in their respective fields, to author select entries.

Joseph Broski (Dionysian Society International)

5 out of 5 stars Brilliant .......2007-07-16

These are the best books on wines world i've ever seen. I'm learning a lot.

5 out of 5 stars Oxford Companion is excellent.......2007-07-03

The Oxford Companion has met our expectations very well. Highly recommended for general information about wine and related topics; this is not a "what wine to buy for tonight" guide.

ds

4 out of 5 stars THE wine encyclopedia.......2007-06-28

search anything about wine? it's there. Just great, very accurate and up-to-date. The only disadvantage in my view is that for complete information about some subjects you have to follow refences throughout the book. On the other hand is that a great way to browse it.
In all respects a book worth recommending!
The Oxford Companion to Food 2nd Ed
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Great resource
  • Witty and Informative
  • Too many errors
  • Great Reading, Some odd omissions. No recipes.
  • Exceptional
The Oxford Companion to Food 2nd Ed
Alan Davidson , and Helen Saberi
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Hospitality, Travel & TourismHospitality, Travel & Tourism | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
ReferenceReference | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
CookingCooking | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | Reference | Subjects | Books
LeisureLeisure | Sociology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
All TitlesAll Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Business & InvestingBusiness & Investing | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Cooking, Food & WineCooking, Food & Wine | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
NonfictionNonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ReferenceReference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:
  1. The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition
  2. The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink
  3. Larousse Gastronomique Larousse Gastronomique
  4. On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen
  5. Food in History Food in History

ASIN: 0192806815

Amazon.com

Alan Davidson's Oxford Companion to Food has been over 20 years in the assembling, but here it is; and it is superlatively worth the wait. In fact, superlatives fall silent. A huge and authoritative dictionary of 2,650 entries on just about every conceivable foodstuff, seasoning, cuisine, cooking method, historical survey, significant personage, and explication of myth, it is supplemented by some 40 longer articles on key items. Davidson himself (no relation to this reviewer) contributes approximately 80 percent of the 2,650 entries, thereby guaranteeing high levels of erudition, readability, and deadpan feline wit. Since this is a monument intended to last, nothing so frivolous as a recipe is included. A decision taken early in the development of the project to abjure issues whose significance is largely topical has also ensured an agreeable high-mindedness--nothing on those crucial but essentially dreary topics of BSE and GM foods, for example.

If a fault could be found, it would only be that it's often difficult to read to the end of an entry, as the abundant cross-referencing all too easily sends one off to another entry, thence bouncing off to another, and all too soon the original is forgotten. A random alphabet of seductions might include: Aardvark, Botulism, Cup Cake, David (Elizabeth), Enzymes, Fat-Tailed Sheep, Gender/Sex and Food, Hallucinogenic Mushrooms, Ice Cream Sundae, Jewish Dietary Laws, Kangaroos, Lobscouse, Microwave Cooking, Norway, Offal, Puffin, Queen of Puddings, Roti, Scurvy, Termite Heap Mushroom (or Taillevant), Umeboshi, Vegetarianism, Washing up (a very elegant little article), sadly no X, Yin-yang, and Zabaglione. As this might show, Alan Davidson's aim, borrowed from Dumas's great Grand Dictionnaire de Cuisine, that his work would appeal not only to persons of "serious character" but also those "of a much lighter disposition," is utterly fulfilled. --Robin Davidson, Amazon.co.uk

Book Description

The Oxford Companion to Food by Alan Davidson, first published in 1999, became, almost overnight, an immense success, winning prizes and accolades around the world. Its combination of serious food history, culinary expertise, and entertaining serendipity, with each page offering an infinity of perspectives, was recognized as unique. The study of food and food history is a new discipline, but one that has developed exponentially in the last twenty years. There are now university departments, international societies, learned journals, and a wide-ranging literature exploring the meaning of food in the daily lives of people around the world, and seeking to introduce food and the process of nourishment into our understanding of almost every compartment of human life, whether politics, high culture, street life, agriculture, or life and death issues such as conflict and war. The great quality of this Companion is the way it includes both an exhaustive catalogue of the foods that nourish humankind - whether they be fruit from tropical forests, mosses scraped from adamantine granite in Siberian wastes, or body parts such as eyeballs and testicles - and a richly allusive commentary on the culture of food, whether expressed in literature and cookery books, or as dishes peculiar to a country or community. The new edition has not sought to dim the brilliance of Davidson's prose. Rather, it has updated to keep ahead of a fast-moving area, and has taken the opportunity to alert readers to new avenues in food studies.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Great resource.......2007-07-16

I value the Oxford Companion as a wide-ranging resource although it's very scope allows for general rather than specific accounts of the many food items it covers. Nevertheless, it is great to have at hand and it does come with comprehensive bibliographical information for those wishing to look at topics in more detail.

5 out of 5 stars Witty and Informative.......2006-12-05

If you like the dry acerbic wit of P.G. Wodehouse, if you like the straight-faced humour of the Economist, then you'll be a fan of the writing style here. This is a dense, information-packed book that works well as a coffee-table decoration, but you'll find yourself pulling it into your lap and curling up with a nice cup of hot tea/coffee and reading entries at random. The literary tone and multitude of cross-references make this a particularly good way to while away those lazy afternoons. (Remember those pulp adventure novels that, after each entry, asked you to make a choice? "If you choose A, go to p. 235; If you choose B, go to p. 322", etc. This is a little bit like that.)

There are no actual recipes per se, but there are many ideas and tidbits about how certain foods/ingredients are traditionally or commonly eaten in various parts of the world.

Here is one slyly humourous entry that had me choked (!) with laughter:
"CHEEKS of animals, because they usually yield rich, savory juices, are a good choice to include in stews, pies, and sausages. However, because cheek muscles are exercised constantly, the meat is tough and needs long cooking. COD cheeks, on the other hand, are tender morsels, perhaps because cod are not eating all the time and do not exercise their cheeks in making noises."

1 out of 5 stars Too many errors.......2006-07-30

As many others have pointed out, this book is quite biased in it's handling of the cuisines of different countries. Yes this book is quite Anglo-centric, but what would you expect? There is also a clear dislike of all things American and the author would have you think that this countries sole contributions to the world of gastronomy are fast food joints and Coca Cola.

However, the reason I only gave it one star is the accuracy of the entries. We have a right to expect that reference works from this publisher be painstakingly researched to present information without error. But there are just too many factual errors to ignore. Three examples serve to make my point.

In an entry about ice cream sundaes, he refers to one of the towns as Two Rivers, Michigan. Two Rivers is in Wisconsin. Next, in an entry for chuck wagon he refers to wranglers as the assistants to the cook. Wranglers handled the movement of the herd and never, ever assisted the cook who almost always worked alone. Third, in an article about the United States, he writes of the emergence of fast food chains including "White Tower" Huh? I'll admit that sliders aren't for all palates, but the chain is White Castle.

There are just three that come to mind but I'm only up to the letter F. Should obvious, easy to research mistakes such as these be tolerated? For me, it brings the accuracy of the entire book into question.

I expected better from Oxford University Press.

5 out of 5 stars Great Reading, Some odd omissions. No recipes........2005-11-01

`The Oxford Companion to Food', edited by the noted English culinary writer and diplomat, Alan Davidson is a foody reader's compendium to lots of interesting articles about sources, history, some people, and most places regarding food and drink. It is quite properly named a `companion' rather than an `encyclopedia', since, unlike the seemingly similar `Larousse Gastronomique', it contains no recipes whatsoever. This is not an accident or oversight, as Davidson clearly states in the introduction that this was an editorial policy from the outset.

This book has a distinctly British flavor about it with its selection of article topics. While there is an excellent longish article on Elizabeth David, easily the most important British food writer of the 20th century, there are no articles on either Julia Child or James Beard, the two most popular and well known American food writers. Alternately, there is an excellent article on M. F. K. David who is much less well known even among Americans. Child and Beard are mentioned but once at the end of an article on American cookbook writing. This choice is an excellent symptom of what this book is all about. It is not about cooking so much as the writing about food culture. While Child and Beard were cookbook writers par excellence, David and Fisher dealt less with food than they did with appetites, impressions, scholarship, and recollections?

The book is oddly selective in other ways. It has an article of goodly length on H. J. Heinz, but nothing on Milton Hershey. These two men are, in the United States, of at least equal renown; they were contemporaries, and both set up their businesses in Pennsylvania at about the same time. Another oddity is the fact that there is an article on Nepal, where, I suspect, very little grows, but no article on Senegal on the west coast of Africa and the ancestral home of many slaves brought to the new world and, therefore, the source of many food memories which contributed to `soul food' cuisine.

This is not to say this is not a valuable book. Many articles give fuller coverage to many culinary subjects than even books that specialize in some subjects. Two sidebar articles on pasta and chilis, for example, give fuller lists of the varieties of these two items than many good cookbooks on the subject. The pasta article is also careful to indicate the regionality of the names of some pasta shapes. I believe the pasta article, for one, could have been even better if it had given us pictures of the various shapes. I really feel that Orecchiette doesn't really look like ears, even though all texts describing it always say it does.

The book also avoids some common mistakes with accurate information on, for example, the components of the sharp vapors from a cut onion. Unlike lots of simpler minds, the article on same points out that these tearing fumes are really composed of many different components, which is part of the reason why most methods for avoiding them don't work.

The book is so dedicated to it's no recipe policy that it doesn't even give us articles on some basic preparations such as `buerre blanc'. It also does not even include recipes for such basics as mayonnaise or pesto.

This book is very good, but it is not as valuable a culinary resource as the aforementioned `Larousse Gastronomique' which provides thousands of basic recipes and pictures for just about everything imaginable, including uniforms of Renaissance culinary guild members. This book is also a bit pricy, listing at close to the price of a copy of Larousse. So, if you are a foody who must own every notable book on food, then buy this. But, if you are only interested in books to help you cook, get the Larousse. Note that the paperback version of this volume is published by Penguin and is therefore known as `The Penguin Companion to Food'.

5 out of 5 stars Exceptional.......2005-06-06

Perhaps the single most useful, complete and amusing reference book in my collection. It touches on geography, geology, sociology and much else besides. The late editor and journalist Auberon Waugh called this 'The best book written on this, or possibly any other subject.'

The author took twenty-three years to compile this work, dying four years later. It is a work that will live on as long as there are books and a love of food.

It should be on the shelf of every educated person.
The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • for anyone who has cooked, dined out, or eaten anything...
  • A fascinating and useful resource
The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

GeneralGeneral | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
ReferenceReference | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | U.S. Regional | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
CookingCooking | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:
  1. The Oxford Companion to Food 2nd Ed The Oxford Companion to Food 2nd Ed
  2. American Food Writing: An Anthology: With Classic Recipes American Food Writing: An Anthology: With Classic Recipes
  3. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America: 2-Volume Set The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America: 2-Volume Set
  4. Culinary Biographies: A Dictionary of the World's Great Historic Chefs, Cookbook Authors and Collectors, Farmers, Gourmets, Home Economists, Nutritionists, Restaurateurs, Philosophers, Physicians, Scientists, Writers, and Others Who Influenced the Way We Eat Today Culinary Biographies: A Dictionary of the World's Great Historic Chefs, Cookbook Authors and Collectors, Farmers, Gourmets, Home Economists, Nutritionists, Restaurateurs, Philosophers, Physicians, Scientists, Writers, and Others Who Influenced the Way We Eat Today
  5. How to Pick a Peach: The Search for Flavor from Farm to Table How to Pick a Peach: The Search for Flavor from Farm to Table

ASIN: 0195307968

Book Description

Offering a panoramic view of the history and culture of food and drink in America with fascinating entries on everything from the smell of asparagus to the history of White Castle, and the origin of Bloody Marys to jambalaya, the Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink provides a concise, authoritative, and exuberant look at this modern American obsession. Ideal for the food scholar and food enthusiast alike, it is equally appetizing for anyone fascinated by Americana, capturing our culture and history through what we love most--food! Building on the highly praised and deliciously browseable two-volume compendium the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, this new work serves up everything you could ever want to know about American consumables and their impact on popular culture and the culinary world. Within its pages for example, we learn that Lifesavers candy owes its success to the canny marketing idea of placing the original flavor, mint, next to cash registers at bars. Patrons who bought them to mask the smell of alcohol on their breath before heading home soon found they were just as tasty sober and the company began producing other flavors. Edited by Andrew Smith, a writer and lecturer on culinary history, the Companion serves up more than just trivia however, including hundreds of entries on fast food, celebrity chefs, fish, sandwiches, regional and ethnic cuisine, food science, and historical food traditions. It also dispels a few commonly held myths. Veganism, isn't simply the practice of a few "hippies," but is in fact wide-spread among elite athletic circles. Many of the top competitors in the Ironman and Ultramarathon events go even further, avoiding all animal products by following a strictly vegan diet. Anyone hungering to know what our nation has been cooking and eating for the last three centuries should own the Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink. BL Nearly 1,000 articles on American food and drink, from the curious to the commonplace BL Beautifully illustrated with hundreds of historical photographs and color images BL Includes informative lists of food websites, museums, organizations, and festivals

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars for anyone who has cooked, dined out, or eaten anything..........2007-05-05

Don't let "Oxford" scare you. Although amazingly researched and documented, the book is written for everyone who has eaten a twinkie to a
buche du noel.

Amazing history lessons on everything you like or dislike to eat.

As a native marylander, i was happy to learn the derivation of "stuffed ham"

A great gift for anyone who eats.

5 out of 5 stars A fascinating and useful resource.......2007-04-19

It's hard to put down - you can just open up to any page and find something interesting about food in American history - and drink too, of course. The foodie will absolutely adore having this book on their shelf! The illustrations and the historical images throughout are very interesting. The quality of the writing is excellent - I wouldn't expect anything less from Oxford. I'll be putting this right alongside my Oxford Companion to Wine!
The Food and Wine Set: Consisting of the Oxford Companion to Food and the Oxford Companion to Wine
Average customer rating: Not rated
    The Food and Wine Set: Consisting of the Oxford Companion to Food and the Oxford Companion to Wine

    Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

    Food & WineFood & Wine | Wine | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
    ASIN: 0195216660
    The Oxford Companion to the Wines of North America
    Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
    • Good, but could have been better
    • an inferior supplement to the Oxford Companion to Wine
    • Doesn't deliver as a "companion"
    • The definitive guide for wine connoisseurs
    • Wit and Unbelievable Wisdom
    The Oxford Companion to the Wines of North America

    Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

    GeneralGeneral | Baking | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
    SpiritsSpirits | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
    Wine & WinemakingWine & Winemaking | Wine | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
    GeneralGeneral | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
    CookingCooking | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
    GeneralGeneral | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
    GeneralGeneral | Reference | Subjects | Books
    ReferenceReference | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books
    GrapesGrapes | By Plant | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
    Similar Items:
    1. The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition
    2. The World Atlas of Wine The World Atlas of Wine
    3. Oz Clarke's Australian Wine Companion (Oz Clarke's Wine Companions) Oz Clarke's Australian Wine Companion (Oz Clarke's Wine Companions)
    4. The New Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, Fourth Edition The New Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, Fourth Edition
    5. The Cigar Companion: The Connoisseur's Guide The Cigar Companion: The Connoisseur's Guide

    ASIN: 019860114X

    Book Description

    An authoritative guide to wine production in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, highlighting geographical, philosophical, and commercial variations throughout the region. It consists of a series of introductory essays, discussing in depth key topics such as prohibition, cybersales, wine auctions, microbiology, labor, and viticulture, followed by more than 500 A-Z entries, including individual wineries and winemakers, regions, grape varieties, technical terms, and more. The text is complemented by 20 beautiful full-colour illustrations, and by an extensive map section. The text is closely linked, for example by the use of cross-references, to the Oxford Companion to Wine, to which it serves as a complementary volume.

    Customer Reviews:

    4 out of 5 stars Good, but could have been better.......2006-11-09

    Given some of the less than stellar reviews of this book, I was expecting far less. This is a collection of excellent information specific to North American winemaking, wineries, producers, etc., that can't - to my knowledge at least - be found anywhere else "under the same roof". There are also some good introductory articles that are educational, especially for the neophyte.

    True, the maps in the back of the book are fairly useless. They display towns, highways, mountain ranges, elevation, but no AVAs. That left me dumbfounded. I now know that Hwy 101 can take you from LA to Ventura and further north into Washington State, but - so what? I already knew that, and I live in Illinois. If you're going to include maps in a book like this, they need to be specific and informative.

    Still, as I said, the fact that there is excellent information in the A-Z section, and that in the text of that section references are directly made to the Oxford Companion to Wine if the reader wants more information, makes this a very good reference.

    3 out of 5 stars an inferior supplement to the Oxford Companion to Wine.......2002-02-02

    The "Oxford Companion to Wine", edited by Jancis Robinson, is the definitive modern reference on wine. Not intended to be read as a book, the entries nevertheless make compelling reading and following the cross-referenced entries can easily consume a pleasurable evening. This "supplement" doesn't live up to the original in terms of quality, comprehensiveness or value. If you were expecting a version of the companion tuned to American wines, you'll be sorely disappointed. On the other hand, if you can't get enough of the original and long for more information on California growers, this isn't a bad start. We can always hope for a revised, expanded, second edition.

    For the North American supplement, Jancis Robinson served only as a "consulting editor". She apparently corrected the editor's English usage (see the preface), but she didn't write any of the entries. She did write two throwaway pieces in the beginning of the book on "How Good are North American Wines?" and "Commentators and the Wine Media". There are roughly 60 pages worth of introduction to North American Wine, most of which I did not find deep enough to be particularly informative.

    Almost all of the cross-references on vinification, wine-making, cellaring, tasting, defects, grapes, etc. are in the "Oxford Companion", making it essentially impossible to use the North American guide alone.

    Compared to the "Oxford Companion", the entries are relatively breezy. The font is larger, the margins are wider, and the book is much shorter. Like the "Oxford Companion", the maps are truly horrendous; you'll remember them from coloring assignments in grade school. Invest in Hugh Johnson's and Jancis Robinson's wonderful new "World Atlas of Wine" for maps. The Atlas's coverage of North American wine styles, grapes and regions isn't half bad, either.

    2 out of 5 stars Doesn't deliver as a "companion".......2001-04-03

    I bought this book for our public library's reference collection. Reviews indicated that this book would be an excellent source of information about wine. It falls far short of that. One example: I needed it for a definition of "syrah" (which they refer to in an article) - neither the alphabetical arrangement of the book nor the index yielded anything. This is a coffee table book and nothing more.

    5 out of 5 stars The definitive guide for wine connoisseurs.......2001-02-16

    The Oxford Companion To The Wines Of North America is the definitive guide for wine connoisseurs, weaving the knowledge of 21 wine academics and writers from all over American into a set of compelling introductory essays. The comprehensive 302-page compendium includes an A-to-Z survey of North American vineyards and wine terminology. The informative, "reader friendly" text is further enhanced with superb color photography, twenty maps, and an exhaustive index. The Oxford Companion To The Wines Of North America is an invaluable, fundamental reference for all wine enthusiasts and would make an excellent Memorial Fund acquisition selection for community library collections.

    5 out of 5 stars Wit and Unbelievable Wisdom.......2000-12-26

    "Waiting on Petite Sirah hoping for elegance is like marrying a stripper in the hope of witty conversation in old age."

    This is the wonderful kind of wit that you find throughout this book. Bruce Cass, Jancis Robinson and the other fine wine writers who are responsible for the book's substance all appear to have a tremendous love of wine but don't need to deify it. I laughed out loud several times as I read descriptions of wines and wine characters.

    The Wisdom is even more amazing. There is a wealth of factual information and interpretation. Just open up the book to any page and start to read. Within 45 seconds, you will utter, "Wow, I didn't know that."

    This is the best book on wines written in a long time.
    The Oxford Companion to Italian Food
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      The Oxford Companion to Italian Food
      Gillian Riley
      Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Hardcover

      GeneralGeneral | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
      ItalianItalian | European | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
      GeneralGeneral | Reference | Subjects | Books
      Similar Items:
      1. Arranging the Meal: A History of Table Service in France (California Studies in Food and Culture) Arranging the Meal: A History of Table Service in France (California Studies in Food and Culture)
      2. The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes from a Delicious Revolution The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes from a Delicious Revolution
      3. Food Is Culture (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History) Food Is Culture (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History)
      4. Gastronomy of Italy Gastronomy of Italy
      5. The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (The Liberation Trilogy) The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (The Liberation Trilogy)

      ASIN: 0198606176

      Book Description

      Here is an inspiring, wide-ranging A-Z guide to one of the world's best-loved cuisines. Designed for cooks and consumers alike, The Oxford Companion to Italian Food covers all aspects of the history and culture of Italian gastronomy, from dishes, ingredients, and delicacies to cooking methods and implements, regional specialties, the universal appeal of Italian cuisine, influences from outside Italy, and much more. Following in the footsteps of princes and popes, vagabond artists and cunning peasants, austere scholars and generations of unknown, unremembered women who shaped pasta, moulded cheeses and lovingly tended their cooking pots, Gillian Riley celebrates a heritage of amazing richness and delight. She brings equal measures of enthusiasm and expertise to her writing, and her entries read like mini-essays, laced with wit and gastronomical erudition, marked throughout by descriptive brilliance, and entirely free of the pompous tone that afflicts so much writing about food. The Companion is attentive to both tradition and innovation in Italian cooking, and covers an extraordinary range of information, from Anonimo Toscano, a medieval cookbook, to Bartolomeo Bimbi, a Florentine painter commissioned by Cosimo de Medici to paint portraits of vegetables, to Paglierina di Rifreddo, a young cheese made of unskimmed cows' milk, to zuppa inglese, a dessert invented by 19th century Neapolitan pastry chefs. Major topics receive extended treatment. The entry for Parmesan, for example, runs to more than 2,000 words and includes information on its remarkable nutritional value, the region where it is produced, the breed of cow used to produce it (the razza reggiana, or vacche rosse), the role of the cheese maker, the origin of its name, Moliere's deathbed demand for it, its frequent and lustrous depiction in 16th and 17th century paintings, and the proper method of serving, where Riley admonishes: "One disdains the phallic peppermill, but must always appreciate the attentive grating, at the table, of parmesan over pasta or soup, as magical in its way as shavings of truffles." Such is the scope and flavor of The Oxford Companion to Italian Food. For anyone with a hunger to learn more about the history, culture and variety of Italian cuisine, The Oxford Companion to Italian Food offers endless satisfactions. BLMore than 900 headwords BLThought-provoking and entertaining essay-style A-Z entries make this the ideal companion for anyone who wants to learn more about Italian cookery BLEntries written not as dictionary entries but as short surveys, detailing the context in which a dish or food was conceived or developed; how it is, or was, prepared and consumed; and its historical and contemporary importance BLExtensive cross-references facilitate ease-of-use BLIn addition to the A-Z entries, the Companion will include a thematic index, a general index, comprehensive bibliography, and list of suggested further reading
      Oxford Companion to the Wines of North America
      Average customer rating: Not rated
        Oxford Companion to the Wines of North America
        Bruce Cass
        Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
        ProductGroup: Book
        Binding: Hardcover
        ASIN: B000O6WX0U
        The Oxford Companion to Wine
        Average customer rating: Not rated
          The Oxford Companion to Wine
          Jancis Robinson
          Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
          ProductGroup: Book
          Binding: Paperback
          ASIN: B000OKVMSK

          Books:

          1. The Oxford Picture Dictionary: English-Spanish Edition
          2. The Phoenix Phenomenon: Rising from the Ashes of Grief
          3. The Potty Book - For Girls
          4. The Quickie
          5. The RealAge(R) Workout: Maximum Health, Minimum Work
          6. The Right Touch: A Read-Aloud Story to Help Prevent Child Sexual Abuse (Jody Bergsma Collection)
          7. The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids Favorite Meals
          8. The Swiss Secret to Optimal Health: Dr. Rau's Diet for Whole Body Healing
          9. The Virgin's Lover
          10. The Weight Loss Cure They Don't Want You to Know About

          Books Index

          Books Home

          Recommended Books

          1. The Winter Lodge
          2. Thai Food
          3. Frontera Street
          4. History: Fiction or Science
          5. History: Fiction or Science
          6. Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics, Third Edition
          7. Living in the Environment: Principles, Connections, and Solutions
          8. Grounded: Frank Lorenzo and the Destruction of Eastern Airlines
          9. Global City-Regions: Trends, Theory, Policy
          10. Georgia Business Directory 2001-2002: The Ultimate Sales & Credit Tool