Book - North American Pinot Noir, John Winthrop Haeger

Synopsis:
This highly-rated reference guide includes historical and viticultural background and profiles on dozens of prominent producers. A comprehensive reference for winemakers and aficionadoes alike, as well as a sourcebook for casual enthusiasts.

Detailed Summary:
Pinot noir, the most elegant, sexy, and capricious red wine grapes, has been producing impressive wines in North America for several decades. Though one must credit rogue winemakers devoted more to their dreams than to common business sense, much of the success of North American Pinot must go to the support of restaurateurs, wine merchants and consumers in search of alternative wine experiences.

The ultimate in food wine, pinot noir develops its unique allure from its special combination of aromas, flavors, and mouthfeel. We particularly like it (and Miles would undoubtedly agree) that in today's wine world of march-step conformity to the "international style" where all wines are tasting increasingly similar, pinot noir has a legendary capacity to reflect the terroir where it is grown, making each pinot different from the last. Combine this with its well-deserved reputation for being difficult to grow, produce and ship and one can see why wine lovers view pinot as the Mount Everest of wine appreciation.

This is the definitive work on pinot noir in North America. It includes extensive historical and viticultural background on pinot noir in the New World and profiles of six dozen prominent producers in California, Oregon, British Columbia, and New York.

John Winthrop Haeger, known for his perceptive wine writing for more than fifteen years, gives contextual and comparative information about pinot noir in Burgundy and then tells the story of wine producers' early failures, frustrations, and breakthroughs in North America. He discusses plant genetics and clones, identifies the essential conditions for really good pinot, tells where the best wines are grown and made, and analyzes the factors that determine wine styles and signatures.

Maps prepared especially for this book cover all the major pinot-producing regions in North America.