Liquid Memory: Why Wine Matters

By Jonathan Nossiter

Jonathan Nossiter had his first taste of wine at the age of three in Paris, from his father's finger. For him, wine is 'memory in its most liquid and dynamic form,' as essential an expression of culture as film, books or painting.

From the wine shops and three-star restaurants of Paris to the biodynamic vineyards of Burgundy, from the hipster bistros of New York to film locations in Rio de Janeiro and Athens, Liquid Memory investigates the infinite mysteries of terroir, the historical sense of place that makes wine a living, expression of cultural identity that can stretch back centuries. It is also a joyful master class in locating the soul of a wine, and in learning to trust your own palate and desires.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Atlantic Books
• Release date: Nov 1, 2010
• ISBN: 9780857892102

Reviews for Liquid Memory

[robertkearney · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Interesting approach to wine appreciation in which the author argues that the evaluation of wine is a dynamic function of th wine, when and where it is drunk, what you know about how it was made and what you eat with it. The author makes frequent analogies between wine making and movie directors. I am too ignorant w.r.t. movies to appreciate these. Nevertheless some of his descriptions are very evocative.The book is also a bit of a crusade against Robert Parker/Wine Spectator and others who claim to be able to evaluate wine objectively. I found it reassuring that there are least a view knowledgeable wine people who find the overblown descriptions by these reviewers hard to understand.