Red, White, and Drunk All Over: A Wine-Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass

In this bodice-ripping wine book that got widespread and excellent reviews in hardcover, multiple James Beard and IACP award-winning writer Natalie MacLean's journey through the international world of wine is the perfect companion for neophytes and wine aficionados alike. Natalie travels to the ancient vineyards of Burgundy to uncover the secrets of the pinot noir, the heartbreak grape from which some of the most coveted wines in the world are made. She visits the labyrinthine cellars of Champagne to examine the myths and the mystique of bubbly. She pulls on sturdy boots to help with the harvest at the vineyards of iconoclastic Californian winemaker Randall Grahm and goes undercover as sommelier for a night in a five-star restaurant with a wine list the thickness of a telephone directory. She looks at the influence of powerful critics, notably Robert Parker and Jancis Robinson, invites readers into her dining room for an informal wine tasting, and compares collecting notes at a bacchanalian dinner with novelist Jay McInerney.

About the Author :
Natalie MacLean is an accredited sommelier and has won four James Beard Journalism Awards, including the MFK Fisher Distinguished Writing Award; five IACP Bert Greene Awards; four Association of Food Journalists Awards; and four North America Travel Journalists Association Awards; and she was named the World's Best Drink Writer. Her work has appeared in Best Food Writing, and she has written for Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Wine Enthusiast, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. More than 65,000 wine lovers subscribe to her free E-Newsletter at www.Nataliemaclean.

Review :
"[Natalie MacLean's] relationship with wine is sensual, very personal and she acknowledges, and occasionally embraces, an aspect of it virtually ignored by most wine books: its delightful effect on the nervous system. She has very cleverly wrapped a wine primer in such appealing anecdote that any reader, male or female, should find learning about wine completely painless." --Jancis Robinson, author of The Oxford Companion to Wine "There's something sensuous about Natalie MacLean's new book ... check that: There's a lot that's sensuous about her charming and disarming paean to the wine world. 'Red, White and Drunk All Over' is a passion play of sorts (with wine as her religion), starring sundry luminaries of the wine world, not least among them the author...With enough wit and wisdom to fill a magnum-sized decanter, MacLean imparts knowledge without seeming 'teacherly, ' thanks in part to a conversational style that never seems 'writerly.'" --Minneapolis Star Tribune "[A] wonderfully witty wine industry expose...Readers will appreciate MacLean's infectious curiosity and her demystification of a seemingly intimidating world. Like a well aged wine, her enthusiasm is irresistible." --Italian Cooking and Living Magazine "This breezy read, told through the lens of personal experience, is a perfect pick-up for the passionate novice who likes a good anecdote along with a lesson on wine ratings. In short, the wine might be dry, but the writing isn't." --Wine News "One volume that stood out for me is Natalie MacLean's Red, White, and Drunk All Over: A Wine-Soaked Journey From Grape to Glass...Her writing style is most definitely playful, but MacLean harbors an ulterior motive in Red, White, and Drunk All Over. As she rambles through vineyards and occasionally stumbles tableside in the dining room, she subtly informs the reader on dense subjects like biodynamic farming, food-and-wine pairing, the effects of 2, 4, 6-trichloroanisole on wine and why wineglasses come in so many shapes." --Atlanta Journal Constitution "Reading about wine can sometimes be as boring as reading about history, but one of the more entertaining wine books this year comes from Natalie MacLean. 'Red, White and Drunk All Over' is really a collection of short stories." --Buffalo News "Along the way, plenty of wine facts and explanations are woven into the breezy anecdotes; it's a painless way of learning more about wine while being entertained. So often wine books are just a boring regurgitation of the facts written by some stuffy guy with a been there, done that attitude. 'Red, White, and Drunk All Over' is written with considerable passion and verve; on the basis of its infectious enthusiasm alone, this is my choice for wine book of the year." --Santa Barbara News Press "[Red, White, and Drunk All Over] will please neophytes and connoisseurs alike...informative and funny. Unlike so many esoteric wine books, this one's a page-turner." --South Florida Sun Sentinel "Eminently readable." --San Jose Mercury News "The best wine book of the year." --Uncorked "Red, White and Drunk All Over, is a 'stand out from the crowd' book about wine. Not just wine, but wine in all of its glory, wine in all of its mystery, wine that is good and wine that is well...not. ....From discovering the intricacies of making a palatable Zinfandel despite it's many idiosyncrasies to unearthing the well-kept secrets of past and present Champagne makers alike, Red, White and Drunk All Over explodes onto the scene with a myriad of wine world nuggets and the insider's scoop that both the seasoned enthusiast and those just tip-toeing into the world of wine will find captivating." --About.com "The book is a breezy, laugh-out-loud funny, peek behind the curtain of the wine trade." --Charlotte Observer "[MacLean] tackles the subject of wine with unbridled enthusiasm...reading about her adventures in the wine trade is like cozying up with a friend's diary." --Seattle Times "Red, White, and Drunk All Over will please the palates of wine lovers everywhere." --Los Angeles Times "[Natalie Maclean] manages to cram a ton of practical information into a lively, often droll narrative." --Chicago Reader "[L]ike a box of open chocolates, it sucked me in and before I knew it, I had finished the whole thing...Natalie MacLean's writing makes me want to pack a suitcase and order a flight ticket for anywhere she plans to go." --eGullet.com "[A] blend of Kitchen Confidential and Sideways...an informative and amusing tour from grape to glass and beyond." --Continental Airlines Magazine "MacLean's guide to wine is engaging, practical, and perfect for novices." --Entertainment Weekly "Bold, irreverent and playful ...a great read for people who want an adventuresome romp through the key regions of the wine world without ever leaving the comfort of their armchair. ..While some wine books can be a bit dull, this one offers a unique approach, a whirlwind of travel and a refreshing travel partner who 's point-blank honest...her enthusiasm is contagious - whether you're an experienced wine traveler or a rookie." --Santa Rosa Democrat "MacLean's memoir of her journey into and around wine is a grand start. She tells engaging, sensual tales about her first explorations. No lists, no quickie bits, but a long, satisfying read." --St. Petersburg Times "Neither an excoriating polemic nor a shameless exaltation of the famous and the fatuous, MacLean's book refreshes with its evenhanded treatment of the outsized personalities populating this industry." --Newsweek "A smart, passionate writer, a bodice-ripping wine book...not your grandfather's wine book...Throughout, she remains engaging, colorful and informative." --Miami Herald "Teetotalers, beware! Natalie MacLean's Red, White, and Drunk All Over is such an engaging and delightful read that it's bound to make a wine lover out of everyone who picks it up. We found the entertaining and instructive stories of how wine is made, evaluated, and enjoyed--featuring some of the wine world's biggest personalities--almost as delicious as drinking one of our favorite bottles with dinner. This book is an absolute gem." --Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, James Beard Award-winning authors of Becoming a Chef, Culinary Artistry, and What to Drink with What You Eat "Natalie MacLean is a voluptuary with brains. Abandon your inhibitions, as she takes you through the wonderful world of wine, teaching you everything you need to know along the way." --Louisa Thomas Hargrave, director, Stony Brook University Center for Wine, Food and Culture, author, The Vineyard "Natalie MacLean deepens one's appreciation of wine as if she were beside you. Her adventures in wine-tasting are as accessible as your favorite pop song." --Kermit Lynch, wine merchant and author of Adventures on the Wine Route "MacLean is an exuberant guide to common and uncommon realms of the wine world. I found her enthusiasm not only for her subject, but also for the people who commit their lives to it, impossible to resist and thoroughly enjoyed this book." --Michael Ruhlman, author of The Reach of a Chef, The Soul of a Chef, and Charcuterie "Natalie MacLean writes about wine with a sensuous obsession. Hopscotching the globe from wine regions to wineries to wine emporiums, interviewing everyone in the realm of wine from winemakers to purveyors to critics, Red, White and Drunk All Over is an eclectic compendium about almost everything relating to wine. Never pedantic, but always erudite and eminently readable--and often laugh-out-loud funny--MacLean's book is a terrific introduction for the inchoate wine connoisseur." --Rex Pickett, author of Sideways "There's everything here: old stories and new, an enquiring mind and bags of enthusiasm." --Hugh Johnson, author of The World Atlas of Wine and The Oxford Companion to Wine "Unlike so many wine guides, this one is an adventure story. Natalie MacLean takes us along as she navigates the sometimes treacherous wine landscape, from vineyard to wine store to restaurant to her own kitchen, putting it all in perspective and even putting a wine snob or two in their place. We finish the journey far more confident--and with a craving for great wine." --Edward Deitch, Wine Critic, NBC and MSNBC.com "A galloping read, which educates, entertains and amuses...[Natalie] is the George Plimpton of wine writers; she shares insights from her 'day in the life of' a vineyard worker, a winemaker, a wine sales person and a sommelier. Exciting tidbits also include insider report of the feud between well known wine experts." --Ann Noble, professor of viticulture, University of California, Davis and creator of the Wine Aroma Wheel "Many have walked down the path of vinous storytelling before Natalie MacLean, but until Red, White, and Drunk All Over, I'm not sure I've ever seen someone so sensibly or surreptitiously provide a starch-free education in wine. In the guise of a heart- and body-warming memoir, we get to learn what she learns while she's learning it. Why, you'd almost be under the impression that she wasn't actually teaching! And beyond being a terrific writer, she's fun company." --Danny Meyer, co-author of The Union Square Cafe Cookbook and Setting the Table "At last, a wine writer who admits flat out she likes the alcohol part about as much as the 'nose' and all the other esoteric nuances...Refreshingly accessible and good-humored entrée into the world of fine wine." --Kirkus "Her passionate desire to learn about all aspects of wine increases its sensual pleasure, and her goal to demystify an intimidating world succeeds...For casual wine lovers, MacLean deciphers the perplexing dilemmas of appropriate wine aging without pedantry...Solid research, a breezy style and commonsense advice prove invaluable for the novice, while her good humor will delight the connoisseur." --Publishers Weekly