Bacchus and Me: Adventures in the Wine Cellar

by Jay McInerney

Overview

With acerbic wit, irreverent tone, and bountiful hilarious anecdotes, Jay McInerney writes the first wine book that makes sense to all those dazed by the prevailing, dull technical wine writing. McInerney generously reveals all he's learned on his worldwide journey to understand wine in chapters on reds, whites, dessert wines, champagne, aperitifs, and more. McInerney holds forth in forty-nine essays - with agile humor; an astonishing amount of hard fact, and an ample dose of personal taste - on: how to make your way around a German wine label; what to drink with Thanksgiving turkey; the truth about Zinfandels; why Burgundy is so hard to predict; Napa Valley's finest winemakers; the pleasure of flinty Chablis, the deep satisfaction of port, the glorious potential of Oregon's Pinot Noir; the respectability of RosT; and the most colorful characters in the business. It is actually possible for a reader of Bacchus & Me to take what is learned to the bank, and immediately thereafter to wine shop or restaurant to indulge in the wine of his or her fantasy with the confidence of a sommelier. Bacchus & Me is for everyone interested in learning more about the wines of the world. For both those of broad means and of modest purse, there is intense vicarious pleasure to be found in McInerney's vinous adventures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780762785483
Publisher:	Globe Pequot Publishing
Publication date:	10/01/2000
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	308
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Jay McInerney is the author of Bright Lights, Big City, Ransom, Story of My Life,Brightness Falls, The Last of the Savages, Model Behaviour, How It Ended and The Good Life. He lives in New York and Nashville.

Read an Excerpt

Jay McInerney on wine? Yes, Jay McInerney on wine! The best-selling novelist has turned his command of language and flair for metaphor on the world of wine, providing this sublime collection of untraditional musings on wine and wine culture that is as fit for someone looking for “a nice Chardonnay” as it is for the oenophile.

On champagne: “Is Dom Pérignon worth four bottles of Mo‘t & Chandon? If you are a connoisseur, a lover, a snob, or the owner of a large oceangoing craft, the answer . . . is probably yes.”
On the difficulty of picking a wine for a vegetarian meal: “Like boys and girls locked away in same-sex prep schools, most wines yearn for a bit of flesh.”
On telling the difference between Burgundy and Bordeaux: “If it’s red, French, costs too much, and tastes like the water that’s left in the vase after the flowers have died, it’s probably Burgundy.”
On the fungus responsible for the heavenly flavor of the dessert wine called Sauternes: “Not since Baudelaire smoked opium has corruption resulted in such beauty.”

Includes new material plus recommendations on the world’s most romantic wines and the best wines to pair with a meal

Table of Contents

	Introduction	xv
	Whites, Pinks, Greens, and Golds
	In the Pink: Rose	3
	White Hope: California Chardonnay	7
	Riesling Reconsidered	11
	The Cult of Condrieu	15
	Gruner Veltliner Loves Vegetables	19
	The Savage Whites of the Loire	23
	Hearts of Stone: Chablis	27
	Number Two and Trying Harder: California Sauvignon Blanc	31
	Overachievers of Macon: White Burgundy on a Budget	35
	Good Hope from the Cape: South African Whites	39
	Champagne and Bubbly
	Beautiful Bubbleheads	45
	If You Have to Ask ... Tetes de Cuvees Champagne	49
	East Meets West: Kaiseki Cuisine and Vintage French Champagne	53
	A Ticket to the Veneto	57
	Schramsberg Don't Make Me Crazy	60
	The Cult of Krug	64
	Reds
	The Discreet Charms of Volnay	71
	Zin Went the Strings of My Heart	75
	Guerrillas in the Hills: Cult Cabernets	79
	Napa's Old Guard Digs In: Classic Cabs	83
	Tough Love: Oregon Pinot Noir	87
	Pinot Envy: Sonoma Pinot Noir	91
	Who You Calling Petite? Petite Sirah	95
	Merlot: Luxurious? Or Lame?	99
	Big Red Monster from Down Under: Shiraz	103
	Summer Reds	107
	A Rivalry Made in Heaven: Lafite and Mouton	111
	Saint-Estephe Steps Out	115
	Bordeaux on a Budget	119
	Saint-Emilion Gets Sexy	123
	Chianti Comeback	127
	Slow-Mo Montalcino: Brunello di Montalcino	134
	Holy Wine or Aphrodisiac? Stop, You're Both Right!	139
	Don't Bogart That Rioja, Sancho: Red Wines of Spain	144
	The Sweet Thereafter
	The Closer: Sauternes	151
	Port Without Purdah	155
	Sweet Stuff from Italy: Vini Dolci	159
	Grape Nuts
	The Biggest Critic in the World	165
	Mondavi on Mondavi	171
	The Baron of Barbaresco	181
	The Wizard of Bolinas	186
	Attitude? Non! (on Sommelier Jean-Luc Le Du)	190
	The Host	194
	Colombo and the Mystery of the Missing Socks	199
	On Doing It Right
	Apropos the Aperitif	205
	Cliff Notes from the Cellar	209
	How to Start Your Own Napa Valley Winery Without Really Trying	213
	Viticulture 101	217
	What to Drink with Cheese	222
	What Goes with Turkey?	226
	Half Notes	230
	The Big Stuff: Magnums, Jeroboams, Salmanazars, and Nebuchadnezzars	234
	Millennium	238
	Appendices
	World's Most Romantic Wines	245
	Not Your Grandfather's Food and Wine Combinations	247
	Traditional Food and Wine Combinations	249
	Glossary of Selected Terms	251
	Selected Bibliography	261
	Index	265

Editorial Reviews

"A whirlwind tour of the wine world."--Danny Meyer, co-author Union Square Cafe Cookbook

From the Publisher

Bright Lights, Big City novelist Jay McInerney doesn’t pretend to be a wine connoisseur. In fact, he confesses that after writing about the subject for five years, he felt even less confident of his grasp of wine than when he started. Nevertheless, this collection of his House & Garden wine columns proves that his intelligence, verve, wine savvy, and writing skills are quite sufficient. In fact, Bacchus and Me is one of the most entertaining wine books in years.

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