It’s a November release, but The Global Encyclopedia of Wine does provide a different slant for a complete guide to the world’s wines. It doesn’t compete on the same ground as Jancis Robinson’s invaluable Oxford Companion to Wine, but instead has more of a traditional world wine book structure, beginning with information about wine grapes and viticulture, winemaking and wine styles. It then moves through the various winemaking countries, with a healthy slant on the New World makers. After all, its editor, Peter Forrestal, is a Western Australian. And for his sins, the aforementional Forrestal asked me to contribute a section on the six major Australian wine companies. The book is positively brimming with colour photography, maps and useful information about the wine of the world and will retail for $99.95.
