THE SOMMELIER'S ATLAS OF TASTE

In this seminal addition to the wine canon, noted experts and James Beard Award-winning authors Rajat Parr and Jordan Mackay share everything they've learned in their decades of tasting wine. THE SOMMELIER'S ATLAS OF TASTE is the first definitive reference book to describe, region-by-region, how the great wines of Europe should taste.

There are books that describe the geography of wine regions and also books that describe the way basic wines and grapes should taste - but until now no book has described the intricacies of the way wines from various subregions, soils, and appellations should taste. Now, for the first time ever, readers can learn about the differences between wines from the 7 grand crus and 40 premier crus of Chablis, or the terroirs in Barolo, Champagne, and Bordeaux. This will also be the first book to attempt to codify "terroir," a famously nebulous and hard-to-describe concept, which is sure to spark passionate discussion within the wine community.

Paying attention to styles, winemakers, soils, and the most cutting-edge of trends, this book explains how to understand European wines not in the classical way, but in the modern way - appellation by appellation, soil by soil, technique by technique - making it an essential reference and instant classic. This will be the go-to guide for aspiring sommeliers, wine aficionados who want to improve their blind tasting skills, and amateur enthusiasts looking for a straightforward and visceral way to understand and describe wine.

RAJAT PARR is the wine director of the 17-restaurant Mina Group. His program at the flagship restaurant in San Francisco holds a Wine Spectator Grand Award. He is also the cofounder of the wine labels Domaine de la Cote, Sandhi, and Evening Land Vineyards.
JORDAN MACKAY is the coauthor of Franklin Barbecue and the author of Passion for Pinot. He is a regular contributor to the New York Times and has written for Food & Wine, Gourmet, Decanter, and PUNCH.