If you are on the verge of falling seriously in love with wine but cannot find the comfortable language to talk about what you are tasting beyond "yuk!" or "yum!" THE WINE LOVER'S BIBLE is for you. Many wine schools use this book for the beginner's text book. How does a white Burgundy differ from a Sonoma Chardonnay? How is a Cabernet Sauvignon based wine from Bordeaux different from a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon? Why does a Marlborough (New Zealand) Sauvignon Blanc taste like it has a grapefruit blended in? You may be daunted by the Sommelier or even an opinionated waiter. You may lack the confidence to toss your opinions out at a company affair or a group dinner. Here you will find straightforward answers and confidence will follow. The Wine Lover's Bible aims to convert a diffident emerging wine lover into an enlightened and passionate consumer. One who delights in talking about wine with words that can be shared. One who is able able to talk about where the wine came from, able to find words that describe the sensory experience and to be familiar with the 'typicity' of those wines you love most.. (More of typicity later.) Don't' throw your hands up and say that knowing wine is beyond reach. Never say--heaven forfend!--that you don't have a palate--unless this condition has been medically diagnosed. You do have a palate! You just need to practice! Like the marathon runner, you need to get lots of mileage behind you. There's lots to be learned but the basics in this--irreverent and unapologetically opinionated 'Bible'--will make it possible for you to grow big time into a savvy relationship with the post-fermentation grape. Your friends may be astonished at your quick conversion to a nouveau aficionado with informed opinions of your very own. How ever can one understand Italy with its extraordinary plantings of two thousand different grape varieties and one million vineyards? Do the French have a lock on quality that no other region can challenge? What about the New World wines? Are they destined for the supermarket shelves only or are they challenging wine history? (They are.) What is the importance of soil, moisture, sun and temperature and what exactly is a microclimate? All of these questions are addressed and laid out so that the beginner or early-career wine lover will gain the insights and vocabulary to express all the beauties he or she is experiencing in their glass of wine.