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About one-third of the way through Andrea Immer's Great Wine Made Simple, the author recounts an anecdote that could serve as the book's theme--alligator, rabbit, and squab were all introduced to her the same way: "Tastes like chicken." And as demonstrated by Immer, who went from debentures to de Rothschild when she quit Morgan Stanley to eventually oversee the 50,000-bottle cellar at Manhattan's famed Windows on the World, the leap from pigeon to Pichon-Lalande is analogous: teaching novice wine drinkers what to expect is what her book, aptly subtitled "Straight Talk from a Master Sommelier", is all about.
With emphasis on her "Big Six" varietals--Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon--this "Immer-sion" class of tastings lets amateur sippers differentiate the typical qualities of each, while illustrating wine terms such as dry, crisp, oaky, and tannic. Practical advice abounds; one chapter devotes itself to finding useful info on a wine label while avoiding "Stupid Label Tricks," those bits of puffery or unfamiliar flavors (how many have actually tasted lychee or red currant?) that can be confusing the average buyer. And her "Flavor Map" concept--dividing the wine world into three climate zones--eschews memorization in favor of some rudimentary geography.
Throughout, her pronunciation guides are accurate and personable ("If you're pronouncing 'Riesling' right you have to smile."); and she provides a great postgraduate curriculum of buying strategies, including the pros and cons of wine shops versus your nearest Costco; and a consumer advisory about restaurant's "award-winning wine lists." --Tony Mason
Review
"Andrea Immer makes wine education simple and fun. One of America's best
sommeliers has written one of the year's best wine books!"
--Robert G. Mondavi
"Without doubt the finest introduction to wine tasting and food and wine pairing I have read. This book is an excellent addition to the libraries of both professionals and aficionados."
--Frederick Dame, M.S., President, Court of Master Sommeliers
"Well organized, succinct, clear, and precise are the adjectives that best describe this Cartesian book on wines. Great Wine Made Simple will educate you without boring you and will lead you joyfully and expertly through the intricate world of the master sommelier."
--Claudine Pépin and Jacques Pépin
Review
"Andrea Immer makes wine education simple and fun. One of America's best
sommeliers has written one of the year's best wine books!"
--Robert G. Mondavi
"Without doubt the finest introduction to wine tasting and food and wine pairing I have read. This book is an excellent addition to the libraries of both professionals and aficionados."
--Frederick Dame, M.S., President, Court of Master Sommeliers
"Well organized, succinct, clear, and precise are the adjectives that best describe this Cartesian book on wines. Great Wine Made Simple will educate you without boring you and will lead you joyfully and expertly through the intricate world of the master sommelier."
--Claudine Pépin and Jacques Pépin
Book Description
At last, a wine book that makes selecting and enjoying wine truly simple. With renowned wine expert Andrea Immer as your guide, never again will you have to fear pricey bottles that don't deliver, snobby wine waiters, foreign terminology, or encyclopedic restaurant wine lists. You'll be able to buy or order wine with confidence-and get just the wine you want-by learning how the "Big Six" basic styles taste and how to read any wine label.
Andrea Immer genuinely knows more about wine than most wine lovers could ever hope (or want) to learn. But she doesn't believe that you have to join a stuffy, exclusive wine-tasting set to become a savvy wine buyer. Unlike other guides on the market, Great Wine Made Simple makes it easy to master the ins and outs of choosing a wine that you and your guests will love-on any budget.
Shunning yesterday's 100-point scales and lectures on "bouquet," Great Wine Made Simple explains wine in commonsense terms. Featuring a core curriculum of the six grapes that comprise 80 percent of today's top-selling wines, along with a complete flavor map that explains what tastes you can expect from climates around the globe, Great Wine Made Simple uses easy and fun tasting lessons to help you identify what you like and learn how to spot it on a menu or shelf.
Immer reveals the secret weapons of wine experts and explains how to decipher those enigmatic labels. In her fresh, encouraging tones, she provides enlightening exercises (such as "milk tasting" for understanding variations in wine texture) and vocabulary sessions. On a mission to empower the everyday wine buyer, with Great Wine Made Simple Immer creates a refreshing new way to choose the perfect wine for every palate and occasion.
From the Inside Flap
At last, a wine book that makes selecting and enjoying wine truly simple. With renowned wine expert Andrea Immer as your guide, never again will you have to fear pricey bottles that don't deliver, snobby wine waiters, foreign terminology, or encyclopedic restaurant wine lists. You'll be able to buy or order wine with confidence-and get just the wine you want-by learning how the "Big Six" basic styles taste and how to read any wine label.
Andrea Immer genuinely knows more about wine than most wine lovers could ever hope (or want) to learn. But she doesn't believe that you have to join a stuffy, exclusive wine-tasting set to become a savvy wine buyer. Unlike other guides on the market, Great Wine Made Simple makes it easy to master the ins and outs of choosing a wine that you and your guests will love-on any budget.
Shunning yesterday's 100-point scales and lectures on "bouquet," Great Wine Made Simple explains wine in commonsense terms. Featuring a core curriculum of the six grapes that comprise 80 percent of today's top-selling wines, along with a complete flavor map that explains what tastes you can expect from climates around the globe, Great Wine Made Simple uses easy and fun tasting lessons to help you identify what you like and learn how to spot it on a menu or shelf.
Immer reveals the secret weapons of wine experts and explains how to decipher those enigmatic labels. In her fresh, encouraging tones, she provides enlightening exercises (such as "milk tasting" for understanding variations in wine texture) and vocabulary sessions. On a mission to empower the everyday wine buyer, with Great Wine Made Simple Immer creates a refreshing new way to choose the perfect wine for every palate and occasion.
From the Back Cover
"Andrea Immer makes wine education simple and fun. One of America's best
sommeliers has written one of the year's best wine books!"
--Robert G. Mondavi
"Without doubt the finest introduction to wine tasting and food and wine pairing I have read. This book is an excellent addition to the libraries of both professionals and aficionados."
--Frederick Dame, M.S., President, Court of Master Sommeliers
"Well organized, succinct, clear, and precise are the adjectives that best describe this Cartesian book on wines. Great Wine Made Simple will educate you without boring you and will lead you joyfully and expertly through the intricate world of the master sommelier."
--Claudine Pépin and Jacques Pépin
About the Author
Andrea Immer, the author of Great Wine Made Simple: Straight Talk From a Master Sommelier (Broadway, 2000) was awarded the title of Master Sommelier from the Court of Master Sommeliers at the age of 30. This gives her the distinction of being just one of nine women in the United States, and ten in the entire world, to hold that title. To do so, she successfully passed each of the three-day intensive sessions on Theory, Tasting, and Practical Service.
In April 1997, Immer was selected as Best Sommelier in America by the Sommelier Society of America, having passed an even more difficult competition for this coveted award. As the first woman ever chosen as Best Sommelier in America, she represented the United States in the Concours Mondial, the international competition, held in Vienna in June 1998.
Formerly the Beverage Director of Starwood Hotels, where she was responsible for 600,000 cases of wine annually, Immer first became interested in wine during her college years at Southern Methodist University where she enrolled in her first wine class. Graduating with degrees in finance and economics, she launched a career as an investment banker at Morgan Stanley. In New York, she became a student at Kevin Zraly's Windows on the World Wine School, placing herself wholeheartedly into an entirely new environment. So enthralled was she that she left behind her work in finance and began a career in wine and beverage. In 1990, she bought a Eurorail pass and took off for six months to explore the wine regions of Europe, which also gave her a practical education in wine when she worked in a grape harvest in Bordeaux.
Upon her return to the United States, Immer joined Windows on the World as cellarmaster, where she was responsible for the famous 50,000-bottle cellar. After Windows on the World closed in 1993, she worked at the Five-Diamond Hilton in Short Head, NJ and then joined Restaurant Associates as Beverage Director. In 1996, when Windows on the World re-opened under legendary restauranteur Joe Baum, Andrea returned as Beverage Director. She currently writes a column for Esquire magazine and hosts a website, www.greatwinemadesimple.com
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