Enjoying American Wines

Harlow, author of the California Seafood Cookbook, here explores American wines, discussing, among other things, the process of winemaking, how to read a wine-bottle label and different varietal types. With an emphasis throughout on wine's relationship to food, the second half of the book gives advice on how to orchestrate a wine-tasting party and how to match wine with food in a series of menus, each combining a specific American wine with a particular course. Recommendations include Stag's Leap cabernet sauvignon to accompany grilled duck breast with red-onion sauce and Fetzer zinfandel for duck stewed in red wine. While purists might wish that this book concentrated on either food or wine, the two blend together as symbiotically as cabernet sauvignon and merlot and leave as pleasant and memorable an aftertaste. (November)