Oldman’s Guide to Outsmarting Wine : 108 Ingenious Shortcuts to Navigate the World of Wine with Confidence and Style
by Mark Oldman
I love wine, but know little about it. I think most people tend to feel this way about grape juice for adults. So, I finally decided to do something about my lack of wine expertise. I found this book while browsing through Kramerbooks in Dupont Circle one day, and bought it despite the fact that a certain someone thought the title was “The Old Man’s” guide to wine and commented on how it would be an appropriate book for me.
The writing style is light, and easily accessible, without the stuffiness one might expect from a book about wine. It’s chock full of useful information, from how to pay attention to wine when you’re drinking it instead of drinking to get drunk (ahem), to how to order wine in different settings (your approach might be different for a business meal versus, say, trying to impress your friends at a fancy shmancy restaurant). You could think of this as a “wine for dummies” book, but that would be insulting to the author, the book, and yourself.
The best part, I think, is that the information in this book is presented in an unbiased fashion. The author teaches wine classes (has been for more than a decade) but since he’s neither a producer, distributor, or seller, you can pretty much take his word at face value.
So, if you have a hankering to learn more about wine, check this book out. More info, including quotes and excerpts, is available at the author’s site, markoldman.com.