The Art and Science of Wine

"This is not necessarily the world’s most poetic wine book, but it really does wrap its hands around the wine business and the nature of winemaking. There is so much detail in the land of wine, winemaking and wine appreciation. And this is one of the best overall general volumes. If someone wants to really get to grips with wine, this and the World Atlas are probably the two best volumes that just get all the detail. And this book is especially good on the technical side as well. There are other winemaking books, but if you have one wine book on a desert island this would probably be the one that you want or need. If I could choose six books, I’d add Andrew Jefford’s The New France and if a seventh, Terry Theise’s Reading Between the Wines , which hadn’t been published when I composed this list originally."