'The most useful single volume on wine ever published. 'a key reference material for any sommelier, wine professional or any amateur serious about their passion' - Imbibe 'One book deserves a place on every wine drinker's shelf, and that is The World Atlas of Wine' - Victoria Moore in the Telegraph Shortlisted for the Louis Roederer Wine Book of the Year 2020 The book is heavy and large, good for a coffee table or credenza in a tasting room, rather than easily navigated in ones chair.Winner of the André Simon Drink Book of the Year Sidebars are informative, and the authors selections of labels are more likely on what they like, or regional standard bearers, rather than the names that might be most in fashion today. They also are not always aligned with North being top of page, since some regions are awkward to fit into the sizing. Pictures are generally stunning, and the maps are detailed, but a little hard to read since so much is crammed into them. Oz gets 20 pages, and then NZ/SA get 15 or so. I thought the coverage of the North Coast was particularly good btw, and many specific vineyards are shown. North America, which is primarily the US gets 40 pages. France gets the lions share of the book at 100 pages, Italy at roughly 40 pages, Spain 20, Portugal 15, Germany 20, and the rest of Europe gets 35 pages. The meat of the book is the regional deep dives. Although people here generally will know all that, its still a good backdrop for the regional focuses, and I would not consider it filler material.

The first 40 pages cover a range of overall topics: grapes, weather, terroir, vineyards, wineries etc. One can keep copies around, and open it to the relevant pages if curious about a wine one is drinking, or mulling over purchasing. As always, it is excellent, and a great reference for enthusiasts, even if one may not read it in depth.

My 5th edition was looking a bit dated, as I had gotten it some decades ago, so I ordered a used copy of the 7th edition from Amazon ($11.82 shipped) and read it cover to cover over a few months, a couple pages at a time.

The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson