Interest in wine has steadily increased in recent years, with people far more sophisticated about wine than they used to be, and with more and more books being written about it, not to mention the success of films like Sideways. And, inevitably, those who take a serious interest in wine find themselves asking questions about it that are at heart philosophical. Questions of Taste is the first book to tackle these questions, illuminating the philosophical issues surrounding our love of wine. Featuring lucid essays by top philosophers, a linguist, a biochemist, and a winemaker and wine critic, this book applies their critical and analytical skills to answer--or at least understand--many thorny questions. Does the experience of wine lie in the glass or in our minds? Does the elaborate language we use to describe wine--alluding to the flavors of cheese or fruit, or to a wines suppleness or brawniness--really mean anything at all? Can two people taste one wine in the same way? Does a wine expert enjoy wine more than a novice? How much should we care about what experts say about wine? These questions and others are not just the concern of the wine lover, but go to the heart of how we think about the world around us--and are the province of the philosopher. With a foreword by leading wine authority Jancis Robinson (editor of the Oxford Companion to Wine), this volume will be of interest to anyone who thinks seriously about the experience of enjoying wine, as well as those interested in seeing philosophy applied to the world of the everyday.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Background in Philosophy and a Love of Wine:
I wouldn't recommend this book unless you are either philosophically minded (i.e. have a background in philosophy) or enjoy scholarly essays. This book is not an introduction to wine, it is not about families in vineyards, about wine lovers and wine-makers sharing their personal tales about wine and the wine experience (although Chapter 10 does focus on Ridge winemaker, Paul Draper and his opinions about wine and wine culture - if you can pick this book up at the library, just read his interview with wine... more info
Questions of Taste is more a question of boring:
Recently into wine and on the verge of being a wine geek I found this book not well written and a bit boring. It's a struggle and not worth the price of a hardback wait for the paperback or when it gos to the book store on sale.
Great book!:
A very witty and interesting philosophical guide to wine. It's great to see prominent philosophers not just writing about the usual abstractions but considering the serious puzzles that confront wine-lovers: how can we have a shared vocabulary for describing how wine tastes? Is there really such a thing as expertise in wine-tasting? It even has a chapter on intoxication - most writers seem to miss that aspect of wine-drinking! Definitely the most orginal book on wine I've read. I recommend it especially to... more info
Highly Recommended!:
A friend had recommended this book to me and, although I enjoy wine and lite philosophy, I have to admit that I was at first daunted by the title. But after another friend, a sommelier, told me that I had to read it, I finally bought it--and loved it! I didn't expect that I, a non-philosopher (though a wine lover), would be able to keep pace but I'm glad to report that I was wrong. You'll find within this book's pages the best possible presentation of what many may deem a highly subjective topic.... more info
