The Book

Too much of today’s wine is mass-produced, industrially farmed, corporate-owned, and essentially, ordinary. In The World in a Wineglass, I make the argument that the way a wine is made, and who made it, can make a huge difference in your glass—and why that information matters much more than knowing that a wine scored 90 points. Or that it tastes like blueberries. Or “hints of violets and black pepper.” 

Essentially, in this book I take readers on a tour of several hundred brilliant, independently owned wineries around the world—everywhere from France’s Burgundy to Oregon’s Willamette Valley to the Itata Valley in the southern reaches of Chile—bringing local vintners to life and describing the different wines they produce in vivid detail and often in their own words. I try to share my enthusiasm for grape growers and winemakers who are working sustainably or organically along with my belief that a glass of wine can express the place it comes from and capture the essence of the person who made it. And I focus on wines people can afford, rather than $500 rarities, showing readers where and how to find the most interesting bottles out there today. 

My ambition for The World in a Wineglass was to create an accessible, engaging guide to some of wine’s most exciting talents and places: a window into a new, fascinating world for wine lovers everywhere.