Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Tuesday Book Blogging: Books on Wine

I have narrowed down my job search even further to a position in marketing with an emphasis on social media in the wine industry. And the more I look into wine as a business, the more fascinating it becomes. In an earlier post, I talked about networking. I'll be talking to a friend and say, "Oh, by the way, do you know someone in the wine industry?" I have been amazed how many times the answer is, "Why, yes. Yes, I do." Who knew?

So as I search and network and apply, I'm doing quite a bit of reading. Oh my, how much there is to learn! Here are three books I'm working on right now.

I actually went ahead and bought WineWise which was amazingly affordable, given its scope and beauty. Good thing it's affordable, too, since I now want to try all kinds of wine I'd never heard of before, like Viognier. So well-written, too. Very accessible. Here's a teaser:

In the world of fine white wine, there is life beyond Chardonnay. If you want that life to include vibrant spices, honeysuckle and rose petal scents, and the unmistakable aroma of lychees, then you may want to give Gewurtztraminer a try (say it five times fast: guh-VERTZ-tra-meener).
Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized WineIt's blending very well with the second book I'm reading, Judgment of Paris, which is a fascinating story about how California wines come to world prominence, but is a bit of a tough read just because there are so many names and quite a bit of technical information about wine regions and how wine is made. It was made into a not very good movie, sadly, called Bottle Shock, which I saw when it first came out and loved anyway, mostly because of Alan Rickman. I'll post the trailer below. Here's a teaser:

The winery's equipment for pressing grapes and aging wines was badly out of date,and the vineyards were run-down. At the Pasteur Institute, Tchelistcheff had learned the importance of cleanliness around a living product like wine, and it was a shock for him to find a rat floating in a tank of Sauvignon Blanc at Beaulieu.

You'll be glad to know that was back in 1938.

Finally, a friend of mine found a very practical book entitled (straightforwardly) How to Launch Your Wine Career. Well, here's hoping. And if you know anyone in the wine business, let me know, would you?

7 comments:

kayerj said...

I'm glad to know that was many years ago--I'd hate to think of consuming anything that had a rat floating in it. Kaye—the road goes ever ever on

Jennifer said...

How extraordinary. My TT: http://www.rundpinne.com/2011/04/teaser-tuesdays-the-pun-also-rises.html

Lorin said...

Wine is Chris's extended family's business (no joke). We know lots of winemakers and former, disgruntled wine industry people for you to talk to. Send Chris an email and he can put you in touch.

Sonia said...

I know nothing about wine. Maybe I should read this book.


mine is here: http://storytreasury.wordpress.com/2011/04/26/teaser-tuesday-mercy-burns/

Anonymous said...

Laura, this is just plain proof that you're an Episcopalian :-)

Keisha said...

I'm rather new to your blog, but I actually do know someone who woks in social media in the wine industry! Her name is Morgan First, she started a company based in Boston called Second Glass (www.secondglass.com). I worked for Second Glass for a year as a school project, and it was one of the highlights of college.

If you would like to talk to her about breaking into the industry, how to get up to speed on all the wine stuff, and how awesome social media is, you can email her at morgan@secondglass.com, and tell her Keisha Shippy suggested you contact her. Good luck with the new career!

LKT said...

Thank you all so much! And, Ted, I know this is just ridiculously Episcopal of me. I can't escape it.