Summer Reading List

If you’re more in the mood for a staycation than vacation this summer, you can at least transport yourself in mind and spirit with a great wine read. Reading wine books will inspire you and help wrap your brain around the immense world of wine, and summer time is a perfect time to dig in. Here’s a list of a few books, both new and old, that will take you to some great wine regions or at least compel you with some fascinating wine tales.

Books on Wine Worth a Read

So, pull up your beach chair, pour a glass of something and crack a book open.

Judgment of Paris by George M. Taber

The Paris Tasting of 1976 was recently put to film in the movie “Bottle Shock.” This is the book that tells the story of the first time the world realized that wine can be great –even from places-other-than-France.

Wine and War by Donald Kladstrup and Petie Kladstrup

The Nazi occupation of France was a flurry of destruction. Wine is the jewel of France and the Nazis had a lust for finery. During the 1940′s, French winemakers came together to resist and protect their fragile world.

Napa: The Story of an American Eden by James Conaway

You don’t have to leave the country to find a great wine tale. This book chronicles Napa Valley, the fortunes made there, and the wine dynasties that have emerged from it.

The Billionaire’s Vinegar by Benjamin Wallace



A novel about one of the largest scams the wine world has ever seen. The story gets interesting when an American billionaire drops over $100,000 on a single bottle supposedly owned by Thomas Jefferson. A page-turner made for a lazy summer day, this mystery is the true story of a 1787 Château Lafite Rothschild (Bordeaux).

Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes

This classic and widely read book (and movie) still holds up as a romantic read if Tuscany, Italy, is on your horizon.