This book examines controversies in American wine culture and how those controversies intersect with and illuminate current academic and cultural debates about the environment and about interpretation. With a specific focus on the United States of America, the methods that we use to discuss literature and other art are applied to wine-making and wine culture. The book explores the debates about how to evaluate wine and the problems inherent in numerical scoring as well as evaluative tasting notes, whether winemakers can be artists, the discourse in wine culture involving natural wine and biodynamic farming, as well as how people judge what makes a wine great. These interpretative commitments illuminate an underlying metaphysics and allegiance to a culture of reason or feeling. The discussions engage with a broad range of writers and thinkers, such as Roland Barthes, Susan Sontag, Louis Menand, Michael Pollan, Greg Garrard, John Guillory, Amitov Ghosh, Pierre Bourdieu, and Barbara Herrnstein-Smith. The book draws upon not only a number of texts produced by wine critics, wine writers, literary critics and theorists but also extensive interviews with wine writers and multiple California winemakers. These interviews contribute to a unique reflection on wine and meaning. This book will be of great interest to readers looking to learn more about wine from cultural, literary, and philosophical perspectives.

The Spirit of Wine invites readers to discover how the fruit of the vine can deepen one's spiritual life. Internationally acclaimed professor of comparative world religions Dr. Stephen Lloyd-Moffett reveals how a life filled with wine can act as a surrogate for traditional religions and spiritual communities. Whether you are a novice in the Church of Wine or already a devotee, this book will deepen your appreciation for wine by exploring the rich history of oenological conversions, mystical wine experiences, and ancient wine rituals. The book concludes with practical tips, including the secret to creating vibrant wine communities and the virtue of monastically-inspired spiritual drunkenness. Finally, a book that pairs perfectly with a glass of wine.Dr. Stephen Lloyd-Moffett is a professor of Religious Studies at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, amateur winemaker, and caretaker of a backyard vineyard. He holds a Master of Arts and PhD in Religious Studies from University of California, Santa Barbara, as well as a Master of Theology from St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary. His past research includes studies on comparative mysticism, asceticism, the origins of Christianity, and the cognitive science behind religious experience.

A field guide to the new world of wine, featuring an overview of today’s most exciting regions and easy-to-use advice on properly tasting wine, discovering under-the-radar gems, and finding the perfect bottle for any occasion. Highlighting wines from old world regions such as France, Italy, Spain, and Germany to new world wines from the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, and more, The Essential Wine Book tells you what to drink and why. Beginning with foundational information about how wine is made, how to taste it, and how to understand terroir, wine expert and journalist Zachary Sussman then gives an overview of the most important and interesting wine regions today—both established and still emerging. For instance, the great French wines of Burgundy and Champagne are already well known, but for affordable bottles you can easily find at your local wine shop, Sussman profiles up-and-coming producers in other regions, including the Jura, Languedoc-Roussillon, and more. In a similar vein, California's Napa Valley has for decades been the source of America's most prestigious wines, but here you'll learn about other areas of the state that are gaining recognition, from Lodi to the Santa Rita Hills. You'll find user-friendly "just the highlights" notes for each region, as well as recommendations for producers and particular bottles to seek out. Diving deep into what makes each region essential and unique, this comprehensive guides gives new wine drinkers and enthusiasts alike an inside track on modern wine culture.

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AND A NEW YORK TIMES CRITICS' PICK “Thrilling . . . [told] with gonzo élan . . . When the sommelier and blogger Madeline Puckette writes that this book is the Kitchen Confidential of the wine world, she’s not wrong, though Bill Buford’s Heat is probably a shade closer.” —Jennifer Senior, The New York Times Professional journalist and amateur drinker Bianca Bosker didn’t know much about wine—until she discovered an alternate universe where taste reigns supreme, a world of elite sommeliers who dedicate their lives to the pursuit of flavor. Astounded by their fervor and seemingly superhuman sensory powers, she set out to uncover what drove their obsession, and whether she, too, could become a “cork dork.” With boundless curiosity, humor, and a healthy dose of skepticism, Bosker takes the reader inside underground tasting groups, exclusive New York City restaurants, California mass-market wine factories, and even a neuroscientist’s fMRI machine as she attempts to answer the most nagging question of all: what’s the big deal about wine? What she learns will change the way you drink wine—and, perhaps, the way you live—forever. “Think: Eat, Pray, Love meets Somm.” —theSkimm “As informative as it is, well, intoxicating.” —Fortune

Provides an introduction to the historical geography of viticulture and the wine trade from prehistory to the present, considering wine as a symbol, rich in meaning and a commercial product of great economic importance to specific regions.

Join beloved Bible teacher Margaret Feinberg as you learn how to move from simply reading Scripture to entering stories that can be touched, tasted, smelled, and savored. The Bible is full of clever plots and compelling stories, laced with historic insights and literary beauty. But despite its richness and depth, many of us struggle to close the gap between the ancient world and our own. What does it mean to know that Jesus is the Good Shepherd when the only place you've encountered sheep is at a petting zoo? How can you understand the promise of a land overflowing with honey when you buy yours in a bear-shaped bottle? Can you truly grasp the urgency of Jesus' invitation to abide in the vine when you shop for grapes at a local grocery store? In Scouting the Divine, Margaret invites you to accompany her on the adventure of a lifetime across the nation to herd sheep in Oregon, harvest fields with a Nebraska farmer, prune vines in California, and explore hives with a veteran beekeeper in Colorado. Along the way, you'll explore how ancient livelihoods illuminate meaningful truths that apply to life today. With Margaret's trademark humor and vulnerability, you'll: Learn the secret of how to live like you have a shepherd Unlock the sweetest promises of God Discover the gift of divine timing Scouting the Divine will revolutionize the way you understand the Bible--and leave you wonderstruck by the magnificence of God.

From the publisher of Pipette Magazine, discover a natural wine-soaked memoir about finding your passion—and falling in love. It was Rachel Signer's dream to be that girl: the one smoking hand-rolled cigarettes out the windows of her 19th-century Parisian studio apartment, wearing second-hand Isabel Marant jeans and sipping a glass of Beaujolais redolent of crushed roses with a touch of horse mane. Instead she was an under-appreciated freelance journalist and waitress in New York City, frustrated at always being broke and completely miserable in love. When she tastes her first pétillant-naturel (pét-nat for short), a type of natural wine made with no additives or chemicals, it sets her on a journey of self-discovery, both deeply personal and professional, that leads her to Paris, Italy, Spain, Georgia, and finally deep into the wilds of South Australia and which forces her, in the face of her "Wildman," to ask herself the hard question: can she really handle the unconventional life she claims she wants? Have you ever been sidetracked by something that turned into a career path? Did you ever think you were looking for a certain kind of romantic partner, but fell in love with someone wild, passionate and with a completely different life? For Signer, the discovery of natural wine became an introduction to a larger ethos and philosophy that she had long craved: one rooted in egalitarianism, diversity, organics, environmental concerns, and ancient traditions. In You Had Me at Pét-Nat, as Signer begins to truly understand these revolutionary wine producers upending the industry, their deep commitment to making their wine with integrity and with as little intervention as possible, she is smacked with the realization that unless she faces, head-on, her own issues with commitment, she will not be able to live a life that is as freewheeling, unpredictable, and singular as the wine she loves.

A Master Sommelier introduces the basics of wine through scratch-and-sniff stickers.

The Aesthetics of Wine shows that discussing wine within the framework of aesthetics both benefits our understanding of wine as a phenomenon, while also challenging some of the basic assumptions of the tradition of aesthetics. Analyzes the appreciation of wine as an aesthetic practice. Tackles prejudices against bodily senses, showing how they distort traditional aesthetic theory Represents the beginnings of a reformulation of general aesthetics

Celebrate the South of France in a winemaker's memoir. Gerard Bertrand, the foremost winemaker of the Languedoc-Roussillon region, tells how, after a career as a professional rugby player, he grew his family's vineyard to an ever-greater level of excellence. Today his award-winning winery offers the full range of the wines of the Languedoc - red, white, rose, varietal, appellation, estate, still, sparkling, and dessert. An avid environmentalist, Bertrand introduced biodynamic farming to his vineyards, and in his search for deeper meaning, he has created quantum wine, an object for meditation, multidimensional and spiritual. His story will fascinate wine lovers and all those interested in making their dreams become reality.