The Official Guide to Wine Snobbery

by Leonard S. Bernstein

Book Overview

Hailed as the most entertaining reference to wine culture, The Official Guide to Wine Snobbery arms readers with valuable knowledge of wine etiquette, while identifying those senseless acts of snobbery that often lead to embarrassing situations. Included in this book are tips for discreet palate cleansing, a list of in' and 'out' wines and the very surprising outcome of a blind tasting in which California vintages proved superior to some highly regarded...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1569802610
• ISBN13: 9781569802618
• Release Date: January 2003
• Publisher: Barricade Books
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.

Customer Reviews

An amiably and expertly written guide

The Official Guide To Wine Snobbery by Leonard S. Bernstein is an amiably and expertly written guide to everything from how to properly hold a wine glass, to matching foods and wines, to popular controversies surrounding wines and their tasting, and a great deal more. Informed and informative, The Official Guide To Wine Snobbery is an enjoyable, accessible, 160-page instructional guide which is especially recommended for non-specialist general readers with an interest in the pastime and culture of wine tasting.

great reading

This book is out of print and I managed to get a used copy as a gift to a friend. I first read it a few months ago, also a few months after I first got interested in wine. This is great reading for anyone into wine tasting, even only remotely. It not only gives you quite some information about French wines (occasionally American ones), but also teaches you how to be snobbishly cool with the whole thing with scathing humor. You'll laugh as you read through and recognize as well as make fun of your own snobbery in the future.

From a naif.

I neither know nor care about wine, but I found this book enormously entertaining.

Funniest Wine book ever

The book is written as an autobiographical story about Bernstein's quest to reach the upper ranks of wine snobbery. He covers what to order and when (and how to go from impressive to daringly impressive w/out spending too much) paring wine with food, what to do with the cork, how to taste wine without looking dumb, best names for wine ever, etc.This book is great for beginners because it's a great way to learn, or for someone who already "knows it all" when it comes to wine because it's so funny. I've bought this book as a gift for several people and they always comment on it months later. While I suppose you could learn to become quite a wine snob, it's easier to laugh at them. I also noticed that my confidence around wine improved when I realized that the main thing a "real wine snob" did was ignore all "rules" about wine with confidence.

Great Book!

Leonard S. Bernstein shares "snobbish" information without insisting we be a wine snob. As a collector of wine books, I found Bernstein's book one of my all time favorites. He is masterful in weaving personal experiences with bits and pieces of useful wine information. I will give this book as a gift to many of my "co-tasters".