Today, November 16, is Beaujolais Nouveau Day! Under French law, the third Thursday in November is the day that the first wine of the 2017 vintage, made in the Beaujolais region of France, may be released for sale. This wine is extremely young, with the Gamay grapes often having been picked only weeks beforehand. As a result, the flavors are extremely light bodied and fruit-forward, sometimes with an earthiness that makes them special.
In celebration of this special day, I wanted to share some of my absolute favorite books featuring wine. All of these picks are non-fiction, so if you're participating in the #NonFictionNovember2017 challenge, consider picking up one (or more!) of these.
The Widow Clicquot: The Story of a Champagne Empire and the Woman Who Ruled It, by Tilar J. Mazzo - This is a biography of both the well-known French champagne producer Clicquot and the woman who oversaw its growth, Barbe-Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin. Barbe-Nicole's husband died when she was only 27, leaving the Veuve (widow) Clicquot to take the helm of his industry, in the wake of the French Revolution and when the Napoleonic Code made it clear that a woman's place was in the home.
Pairing: A glass of something bubbly, preferably Clicquot if it's in your budget.
To Cork or Not To Cork, by George M. Taber - Did you know that there's controversy around the material used to stopper wine bottles? Cork is the traditional material you encounter at the top of an unopened bottle of wine, but modern winemakers are sometimes using other goods, like screwtop lids, plastic stoppers, and even glass. George Taber takes readers through a deep dive into these three materials, and the reasons they might be used, and why.
Pairing: Any bottle stoppered with cork, plastic, glass, or screwtop
Cork Dork: A Wine-Fueled Adventure Among the Obsessive Sommeliers, Big Bottle Hunters, and Rogue Scientists Who Taught Me How to Live for Taste, by Bianca Bosker - Have you noticed that wine books tend to have really long titles? Bosker was working as a tech editor for an online news site, and decided to quit her job to focus on wine. She begins this new life in the bottom of the barrel (pun intended!) as a cellar rat in a fine-dining restaurant, and works her way through many different areas of the wine world. Throughout the work, she meets some really interesting people, hones her tasting skills, and prepares to take the Court of Master Sommeliers Certified Sommelier Exam. While maybe a little overwhelming for a wine newbie, it's compulsively readable and absolutely fascinating.
Pairing: As many different wines as you (and, even better, a group of friends) can get, to do a blind tasting together. Bonus points if the bottles are covered in aluminum foil or knee socks, so you get the true Bosker experience.
Exploring Wine, by Steven Kolpan, Brian H. Smith, Michael A. Weiss - So you've read
Cork Dork and now want to increase your own wine knowledge? Then this is the book for you! It's the textbook that wine and beverage students use at the Culinary Institute of America, so you know that it's well-researched and comprehensive. You will go in-depth into the details of wine growing, grape variety profiles, wine regions around the world, information on some individual wineries, wines, tasting notes, proper cellaring, serving, etc. The book is 800 pages long, so it's perhaps NOT something you'd read from cover to cover, but it's so full of interesting information and photos that you may not want to put it down.
Pairing: Literally any wine, because it'll be in the book somewhere.
Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized Wine, by George M. Taber - Man, George Taber writes so well about wine! This time, he focuses on a blind tasting that took place between wines from well-established French wineries and wines from the at-the-time nascent California wine industry. Steven Spurrier was a British wine merchant, working in Paris, who sold only French wines. He organized the tasting event as a publicity occasion, fully expecting the prestigious wine tasters to find the French wines superior. However, the results, and their implications for the wine industry as a whole, were shocking to say the least.
Pairing: French Red Bordeaux/Napa Valley Cabernet, French White Burgundy/Napa Valley Chardonnay
Whether you're a wine aficionado or just curious, I hope that you'll find something interesting to pick up from this list. I have absolutely loved each and every book here, and come back to them often. Happy Beaujolais Nouveau day!
Cheers! Librorum annis,
