Tag: Wine Books

Book review: Oxford Companion to Wine, 4th edition

If there’s one book I recommend all wine enthusiasts possess—no matter their level of knowledge or interest in wine—it’s the Oxford Companion to Wine (OCW). Yes, it’s an encyclopedia: bloody heavy and astonishingly comprehensive. It’s […]


So you want to be a Sommelier?

When I tell people I’m a sommelier their typical reaction is usually one of both admiration and confusion. “A sommelier?” they ask. Then, “Wow! But what exactly does that mean?” (There was also that memorable […]


Wine Movie Reviews: from Sideways to SOMM

I’ve been marathoning wine movies over the last couple weeks and decided to write some capsule reviews of the better-known ones for this week’s Vue column. Here are the expanded versions: Sideways (I just wrote […]


Sideways: comparing Payne’s movie with Pickett’s book

“It’s very possible his film will be better than my book.” – Rex Pickett, referring to director Alexander Payne Truer words were never spoken. Sideways is one of those rare exceptions in which the movie […]