The Science of Wine: From Vine to Glass

If you drink wine, but feel uncomfortable using words like phylloxera, brettanomyces or anthocyanins in daily conversation, then this book is a godsend. Light on pages but not for lightweights, Goode combines hard science with a casual conversational style, and though whole paragraphs might discuss specific technical issues, Goode returns to layman language, asking a few simple questions if the discussion becomes complex. ""Why then is oak so good for barrel construction?"" he asks after a paragraph about oak genus nomenclature. ""At what level does TCA the chemical causing cork taint become a problem?"" he asks after a detailed description of chromatography-mass spectrometry. Illustrations could be better integrated with the text, and many of the distant views of vineyards are decorative rather than illustrative, but most of Goode's charts and insets help make the science digestible. Both the chemical composition of wine and the physiological effects of drinking wine, including a fascinating discussion of what actually happens in the brain as seen through MRI scans, are discussed in detail. The wide array of topics and Goode's reader-friendly tone make this a book that'll appeal to science students as much as wine aficionados and professionals.