Wine Wars II

Wine Wars II
Author: Mike Veseth
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 237
Release: 2022-07-01
Genre: Cooking
ISBN: 1538163845

Here’s the inside scoop on the wine world. Globalization has pushed back the borders of the wine world, creating a complex, interconnected market where Old World and New World wines and producers compete head to head. Writing with wit and verve, Mike Veseth (a.k.a. the Wine Economist) tells the compelling story of the war between the market forces that are redrawing the world wine map and the terroirists who resist them. This is the battle for the future of wine—and for its soul. The fight isn't just over bottles bought and sold, however; power and taste are also at stake. Who will call the shots in the wine market of the future? Who will set the price? Whose palate will prevail? Veseth masterfully brings all of these questions together in the only book on the wine business written for all lovers of wine. Wine Wars II begins by exploring wine globalization, where readers follow “Missionaries, Migrants, and Market Reforms” to faraway New Zealand and learn how to unlock the secrets of their local retail “Wine Wall” by mastering the “DaVino Code.” Globalization brings a world of wine to our doorsteps. Commodification helps us make sense of the resulting embarrassment of riches, but at a cost. Readers must decide if they are Martians or Wagnerians, consider why “They Always Buy the Ten Cent Wine,” and then probe the puzzle of “Outlaws, Prisoners, and the Great Escape.” Who stands in the way of the global wine market's assault on wine's very soul? The“Revenge of the Terroirists!” Resistance is not futile, because 'We Are All Terroirists Now,” but that doesn't mean the future of wine is secure. A final section explores “Wine's Triple Crisis,” environmental crisis plus economic crisis, plus identity crisis. Taken together these crises pose the most serious threat to wine as we know and love it. Each section of Wine Wars II ends with a suggested wine tasting that invites readers to experience the book's ideas and arguments with all their senses by sampling a few carefully chosen wines. Can the soul of wine survive – and thrive – in this unfriendly environment? You'll have to read Wine Wars II to find out!

Wine Wars

Wine Wars
Author: Mike Veseth
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Total Pages: 265
Release: 2011-06-16
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0742568210

Writing with wit and verve, Mike Veseth (a.k.a. the Wine Economist) tells the compelling story of the war between the market trends that are redrawing the world wine map and the terroirists who resist them. Wine and the wine business are at a critical crossroad today, transformed by three powerful forces. Veseth begins with the first force, globalization, which is shifting the center of the wine world as global wine markets provide enthusiasts with a rich but overwhelming array of choices. Two Buck Chuck, the second force, symbolizes the rise of branded products like the famous Charles Shaw wines sold in Trader Joe's stores. Branded corporate wines simplify the worldwide wine market and give buyers the confidence they need to make choices, but they also threaten to dumb down wine, sacrificing terroir to achieve marketable McWine reliability. Will globalization and Two Buck Chuck destroy the essence of wine? Perhaps, but not without a fight, Veseth argues. He counts on "the revenge of the terroirists" to save wine's soul. But it won't be easy as wine expands to exotic new markets such as China and the very idea of terroir is attacked by both critics and global climate change. Veseth has "grape expectations" that globalization, Two Buck Chuck, and the revenge of the terroirists will uncork a favorable future for wine in an engaging tour-de-force that will appeal to all lovers of wine, whether it be boxed, bagged, or bottled.

Wine and War

Wine and War
Author: Donald Kladstrup
Publisher: Crown
Total Pages: 306
Release: 2002-06-18
Genre: History
ISBN: 0767913256

The remarkable untold story of France’s courageous, clever vinters who protected and rescued the country’s most treasured commodity from German plunder during World War II. "To be a Frenchman means to fight for your country and its wine." –Claude Terrail, owner, Restaurant La Tour d’Argent In 1940, France fell to the Nazis and almost immediately the German army began a campaign of pillaging one of the assets the French hold most dear: their wine. Like others in the French Resistance, winemakers mobilized to oppose their occupiers, but the tale of their extraordinary efforts has remained largely unknown–until now. This is the thrilling and harrowing story of the French wine producers who undertook ingenious, daring measures to save their cherished crops and bottles as the Germans closed in on them. Wine and War illuminates a compelling, little-known chapter of history, and stands as a tribute to extraordinary individuals who waged a battle that, in a very real way, saved the spirit of France.

Extreme Wine

Extreme Wine
Author: Mike Veseth
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Total Pages: 243
Release: 2013-07-17
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1442219246

In Extreme Wine, wine economist and best-selling author Mike Veseth circles the globe searching for the best, worst, cheapest, most expensive, and most over-priced wines. Mike seeks out the most outrageous wine people and places and probes the biggest wine booms and busts. Along the way he applauds celebrity wines, tries to find wine at the movies, and discovers wines that are so scarce that they are almost invisible. Why go to such extremes? Because, Mike argues, the world of wine is growing and changing, and if you want to find out what’s really happening you can’t be afraid to step over the edge. Written with verve and appreciation for all things wine, Extreme Wine will surprise and delight readers.

Around the World in Eighty Wines

Around the World in Eighty Wines
Author: Mike Veseth
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2017-11-01
Genre: Cooking
ISBN: 1442257377

Inspired by Jules Verne’s classic adventure tale, celebrated editor-in-chief of The Wine Economist Mike Veseth takes his readers Around the World in Eighty Wines. The journey starts in London, Phileas Fogg’s home base, and follows Fogg’s itinerary to France and Italy before veering off in search of compelling wine stories in Syria, Georgia, and Lebanon. Every glass of wine tells a story, and so each of the eighty wines must tell an important tale. We head back across Northern Africa to Algeria, once the world’s leading wine exporter, before hopping across the sea to Spain and Portugal. We follow Portuguese trade routes to Madeira and then South Africa with a short detour to taste Kenya’s most famous Pinot Noir. Kenya? Pinot Noir? Really! The route loops around, visiting Bali, Thailand, and India before heading north to China to visit Shangri-La. Shangri-La? Does that even exist? It does, and there is wine there. Then it is off to Australia, with a detour in Tasmania, which is so cool that it is hot. The stars of the Southern Cross (and the title of a familiar song) guide us to New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina. We ride a wine train in California and rendezvous with Planet Riesling in Seattle before getting into fast cars for a race across North America, collecting more wine as we go. Pause for lunch in Virginia to honor Thomas Jefferson, then it’s time to jet back to London to tally our wines and see what we have learned. Why these particular places? What are the eighty wines and what do they reveal? And what is the surprise plot twist that guarantees a happy ending for every wine lover? Come with us on a journey of discovery that will inspire, inform, and entertain anyone who loves travel, adventure, or wine.

Money, Taste, and Wine

Money, Taste, and Wine
Author: Mike Veseth
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 209
Release: 2015-08-04
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1442234644

“It’s complicated!” That’s a simple way to describe the sort of relationship that seemingly defies simple explanations. Like a love triangle, money, taste, and wine are caught in a complicated relationship affecting every aspect of the wine industry and wine enthusiast experience. As wine economist and best-selling author Mike Veseth peels back the layers of the money-taste-wine story, he discovers the wine buyer’s biggest mistake (which is to confuse money and taste) and learns how to avoid it, sips and swirls dump bucket wines and Treasure Island wines, and toasts anything but Champagne. He bulks up with big-bag, big-box wines and realizes that sometimes the best wine is really a beer. Along the way he questions wine’s identity crisis, looks down his nose at wine snobs and cheese bores, follows the money, surveys the restaurant war battleground, and imagines wines that even money cannot buy before concluding that money, taste, and wine might have a complicated relationship but sometimes they have the power to change the world. His engaging and enlightening book will surprise, inform, inspire, and delight anyone with an interest in wine—or complicated relationships.

The Winemaker's Wife

The Winemaker's Wife
Author: Kristin Harmel
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 432
Release: 2019-08-13
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 198211231X

The author of the “engrossing” (People) international bestseller The Room on Rue Amélie returns with a moving story set amid the champagne vineyards of France during the darkest days of World War II, perfect for fans of Heather Morris’s The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Champagne, 1940: Inès has just married Michel, the owner of storied champagne house Maison Chauveau, when the Germans invade. As the danger mounts, Michel turns his back on his marriage to begin hiding munitions for the Résistance. Inès fears they’ll be exposed, but for Céline, the French-Jewish wife of Chauveau’s chef de cave, the risk is even greater—rumors abound of Jews being shipped east to an unspeakable fate. When Céline recklessly follows her heart in one desperate bid for happiness, and Inès makes a dangerous mistake with a Nazi collaborator, they risk the lives of those they love—and the vineyard that ties them together. New York, 2019: Recently divorced, Liv Kent is at rock bottom when her feisty, eccentric French grandmother shows up unannounced, insisting on a trip to France. But the older woman has an ulterior motive—and a tragic, decades-old story to share. When past and present finally collide, Liv finds herself on a road to salvation that leads right to the caves of the Maison Chauveau.

Wine Science

Wine Science
Author: Jamie Goode
Publisher: Mitchell Beazley
Total Pages: 476
Release: 2014-04-03
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1845339819

This revolutionary book is the only indepth reference to detail the processes, developments, and factors affecting the science of winemaking. Jamie Goode, a highly regarded expert on the subject, skilfully opens up this complex subject and explains the background to the various processes involved and the range of issues surrounding their uses. He reports on the vital progress in winemaking research that has been made in the last decade and explains the practical application of science with reference to the range of winemaking techniques used around the world, as well as viticultural practices, organics and ecology, and lifestyle influences. Written in a uniquely accessible style, the book is divided into three sections covering the vineyard, the winery and human interaction with wine. It also features over 80 illustrations and photographs to help make even the most complex topics clear, straightforward and easy to understand.

The Billionaire's Vinegar

The Billionaire's Vinegar
Author: Benjamin Wallace
Publisher: Crown
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2009-04-14
Genre: True Crime
ISBN: 0307338789

The rivetingly strange story of the world's most expensive bottle of wine, and the even stranger characters whose lives have intersected with it. The New York Times bestseller, updated with a new epilogue, that tells the true story of a 1787 Château Lafite Bordeaux—supposedly owned by Thomas Jefferson—that sold for $156,000 at auction and of the eccentrics whose lives intersected with it. Was it truly entombed in a Paris cellar for two hundred years? Or did it come from a secret Nazi bunker? Or from the moldy basement of a devilishly brilliant con artist? As Benjamin Wallace unravels the mystery, we meet a gallery of intriguing players—from the bicycle-riding British auctioneer who speaks of wines as if they are women to the obsessive wine collector who discovered the bottle. Suspenseful and thrillingly strange, this is the vintage tale of what could be the most elaborate con since the Hitler diaries. “Part detective story, part wine history, this is one juicy tale, even for those with no interest in the fruit of the vine. . . . As delicious as a true vintage Lafite.” —BusinessWeek