New book: Native Wine Grapes of Italy

WINE TALK
1

So, besides drinking wine, I will confess that I like to read about it as well. And I have been drinking and collecting Italian wines long enough that I still consider Sheldon Wasserman’s tome to be the definitive Italian wine bible. So you can imagine my surprise when I was wandering around Amazon the other day and happened to see a new book written by Ian D’Agata.

I am a long time IWC subscriber, and have enjoyed Ian’s writing, especially his explorations into the less traveled areas of Italy, so I had to order this - strangely enough, I have not seen a mention of the book yet on the IWC site.

At any rate, consider this a “head’s up” as opposed to a book review, as I just got it today in the mail and haven’t had the chance to really dive in yet. But it is 500+ pages, and any book that has more than a page discussing Mantonico Bianco is probably going to be pretty “in depth”, so I’m looking forward to perusing this as time permits [cheers.gif] .

2

Thanks for the heads-up. Would love to be able to browse through it. At 500 pages, it’s definitely not a bedtime read.

3

I have a similar book (in Italian) published by an academic press in Italy. It has 900 varieties listed, each one with all the clones and synonyms on one double page display.

Whenever anyone in the store says “but I don’t LIKE Italian wine…” I fan it in front of them and ask “Which ones?”…

4

Bob, I am searching for a good book on wine. Which Wasserman book are you referring to? The Wines of Italy or Italy’s Noble Red Wines? I’ve not read either.

5

Jeff, I’m referring to Italy’s Noble Red Wines, but it’s been out of print for a while, and would be very dated now, as Wasserman died over 20 years ago (if memory serves, the “new” vintage in Piemonte he wrote about in that book was the '89).

That book at the time was what introduced me to Barolo and Barbaresco, just in time for the release of the '89 & '90 vintages [cheers.gif].

There have been a number of general Italian wine books released recently - Ian’s is hot off the presses, so I haven’t gotten through it yet. For an introductory book, Tom Hyland has one out called “Beyond Barolo and Brunello” - it’s not bad, but I don’t like the format/book organization/presentation all that much.

6

Bob, no love for Matt Kramer?

RT

7

Rich, I think Kramer does a nice job for someone who knows nothing about a wine region. Similarly, Nicholas Belfrage has a recent book on Tuscany that is perfect for beginners, but I found rather rudimentary.

FWIW, I was just reading Ian’s section on Nero d’ Avola whilst sucking on a glass of the 2007 Conti Boca and listening to William Parker on the tune box - you could find worse ways to spend an afternoon [cheers.gif] .

I have also enjoyed Bill Nesto’s book (The World of Sicilian Wine), but will also concede that, like Ian’s, you probably already need a fairly high interest level in Italian wine to really appreciate the level of detail he gets into.

8

Thanks. Just ordered it. Looks like “fun”.

9

I just ordered the Wasserman book, it sounds like a great find for me since I have taken an unexpected interest in 1960s/1970s Piemonte wines. Thanks for the suggestion!

10

I agree on the Belfrage’s Finest Wines of Tuscany. An easy read and a bit simple. I’ll check out Ian’s book.

11

Got my copy on Fri and now well into the book.
The book is packed w/ information, not just on specific grape varieties, but w/ more general
wine information. In fact, in can be a bit tedious in places.
For example, we always refer to the study of grape varieties as an ampelography. That is, in fact,
incorrect. What we really mean is ampelology. Ampelography refers to grapevine science based on written
words & illustrations. Ampelology refers to grapevine science based not just on descriptions & illustrations,
but increasingly more so on DNA typing and other branches of science.
Man…I can hardly wait to nail BobFleming the first time he incorrectly uses ampleography, when he actually
means ampelology…for all the times he’s scolded me for the variety/varietal misuse!! neener
The book is not, like JancisRobinson’s book, a must have reference to keep handy on the bookshelf. It’s also
quite a good read. I’ve been going thru it from front to back and reading about some of the obscure Italian
varietals ( neener ) I’ve been trying over the last few yrs.
Interestingly, the book is published by the Univ of Calif Press. At about $27 on Amazon, it’s a great buy.
Anywho…this is a highly recommended book for anyone w/ much interest in Italian wines.
Tom

12

Tom
Many thanks for the info on d’Agata’s book. I’m off to a London event in a fortnight, and he’ll be there signing copies of the book - might just spring for a copy.
regards
Ian

13

Jancis Robinson’s book doesn’t describe well how wines made from the mentioned varieties should taste, an omission I hope they will correct in future editions. D’Agata’s book does a great job of telling you what the wines made from the grapes taste like. I think anyone who is really interested in Italian wines would find it useful.

14

Well…yeah, Oliver. That would, of course, double it in size and make a forklift an essential tool to read
the thing!! [snort.gif]
D’Agata’s descriptions of what the wines taste like is one of the things I really like about the book. And, by & large,
I think he does a pretty good job of that…at least on the half-dozen grapes that I’ve read.
Tom

15

It sounds like a good read but a question for Tom Hill – you said it’s $27 on Amazon but I just checked the site and they show it at $43 (retail price at UC Press is $50). Am I missing a “double secret” discount price at Amazon, a coupon or special discount code?

16

Well, Sherman…it could be my recollect is wrong. Or it could be a pre-release price.
But $43 is a steal for a book of this quality. I’d have to go back & look at my Amazon account,
that I can’t do right now.
Tom

Got it…I was thinking the Kindle price. The $43 sounds right now.
Tom

17

It sure does pack in a lot of great information. There’s info on where a variety grows best and winemaking challenges.

18

Bob,
I enjoy a good wine-read, too. Wasserman is a must have. I will look for this new one. Can also recommend The Wine Atlas of the Langhe; N. Belfridge, The Finest Wines of Tuscany and Central Italy; Bastianich and Lynch, Vino Italiano. I buy the Italian Wines guide every year, and every now and then the Veronelli guides. You can also find some good older, out of print books on Amazon, or Ex Libris, that are fun.

19

Wasserman is worth the price of admission if only for the tasting notes from the 17th Century noting how German pilgrims who had WALKED over the Alps on their way to Rome were “revived from near death by a thimbleful of Madame Salis’ fine Sforzato” when they reached the Valtellina!

20

Thanks for the post, Bob. Just ordered the book from Amazon.