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The Juice: Vinous Veritas (2012)

by Jay McInerney(Favorite Author)

3.38 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0307957284 (ISBN13: 9780307957283)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Knopf

review 1: The inside jacket of the book purports this to be a "master class in the almost infinite varieties of wine". Truthfully, I found this to be more about the people involved in making wine, than about the wine itself. Sure, there were some smattering of comments on various wines and styles of grapes, as well as regions, but the book become more about the people involved in wine. Which was disappointing, especially as none of the chapters really were very educational.So, this was a sampler... a tasting... of the people, not the wine. Not a master class.That being said, I found the writing style of be very haphazard and difficult to read. With the way that names were thrown about, it became very hard to follow which person was doing what, and what vineyard the writer was v... moreisiting, or even the style of grape the author had started writing about. Given this was a sampling of different wines, I shouldn't be surprised that each chapter was a bit of a jumble. But there was really no common thread to follow, or even much connection from one chapter to the next. If a sampling, where was the thought to bring things together? The style or theme? It just wasn't present and left me simply lurching from one chapter with tons of names of people I wouldn't meet, and little but a sentence or two about the wine.Further, I found the book to be a bit inaccessible. Perhaps it's just me, but while I enjoy wine, I don't get hung up on some of the very, very "big names" or the cultism that some get caught up in. In that respect, I felt that I was not the audience for this book, as the author wrote about many wines that would represent a house payment for me, or even a down payment on a car. Is a $10,000 bottle of wine that good? Perhaps. But, the appeal doesn't exist for me, and even the esoteric nature of purchasing something like that doesn't appeal for me either.Still, there were aspects of the book that were good, and hearing a bit of the history on some areas was interesting. Especially when the author did visit particularly old vineyards, that had a long family tradition. More emphasis on that part would have been far more interesting to me, if the emphasis wasn't to be on the wine. Even some perspective on the establishment of newer vinters and regions with a developing presence.But, in the final analysis, this really wasn't as enjoyable a read for me. I found most of it a bit pretentious and bombastic, much like some of the wines described by the author himself.
review 2: The most recent collection of Mr McInerney's article on his adventures in the world of wine may have something for everyone ~ the trick will be finding the story(s) that will make you grab a corkscrew, pop open one of your fav bottles and with glass in hand dive into the rest of thee juicy tales.There certainly is a variety of yearns to choose from here, nicely organized in some broad themes. At about 4 pages long each, these 'essays' can either be a nice light snack or a quick and quirky sampler. I found that many of these articles gave some neat historical background to many of the world's great wine regions, often sharing attractive insights into corners that may not always get the attention they deserve, As well, Mr McInerney does a superb job of introducing us to a varied and unique cast of characters - both past and present - that ply the wine world. Finally, across the pages McInerney subtley sneaks in the debatable and increasingly accepted practice of biodynamic winemaking. My one pet peeve, and perhaps a big one, is that McInerney continuously committs one of the most henous crimes in wine journalism - label drinking and name dropping. He drones on about drinking this famous old, rare and of course expensive wine at such and such restaurant with this or that celebrity. One of the last - and longest pieces - entitled "My Magnum is Bigger..." was just so over the top. This is the kind of stuff that helps keep wine snobbery alive.With a couple more volumes to peruse, perhaps Mr McInerney can prove that wine is in fact an amazing drink made by everyday people to be enjoyed and shared by everyday people. less

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