World Famous Comics: Bacchus and Me: Adventures in the Wine Cellar
Bacchus and Me: Adventures in the Wine Cellar
By: Jay Mcinerney Publisher: Vintage Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Vintage Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 304 Publication Date: March 12, 2002 Release Date: March 12, 2002
Product Description: Jay McInerney on wine?Yes, Jay McInerney on wine! The best-selling novelist has turned his command of language and flair for metaphor on the world of wine, providing this sublime collection of untraditional musings on wine and wine culture that is as fit for someone looking for “a nice Chardonnay” as it is for the oenophile. On champagne: “Is Dom Pérignon worth four bottles of Mo‘t & Chandon? If you are a connoisseur, a lover, a snob, or the owner of a large oceangoing craft, the answer . . . is probably yes.” On the difficulty of picking a wine for a vegetarian meal: “Like boys and girls locked away in same-sex prep schools, most wines yearn for a bit of flesh.” On telling the difference between Burgundy and Bordeaux: “If it’s red, French, costs too much, and tastes like the water that’s left in the vase after the flowers have died, it’s probably Burgundy.” On the fungus responsible for the heavenly flavor of the dessert wine called Sauternes: “Not since Baudelaire smoked opium has corruption resulted in such beauty.”
Includes new material plus recommendations on the world’s most romantic wines and the best wines to pair with a meal
Amazon.com Review: Bright lights: Krug, Latour, Lafite, Montrose. Big cities: Montalcino, Hampstead, Reims, Geyserville. Welcome to Bacchus & Me: Adventures in the Wine Cellar, bestselling novelist Jay McInerney's mixed four-case lot of wine essays culled primarily from his output of "Uncorked" pieces written for House & Garden magazine. Reflecting the author's wit and opinion, it's tasty and stylish stuff. And nestled between glossy pages of photos depicting, say, a 396-square-foot TriBeCa loft decorated with a pair of Eames chairs purchased at a Brooklyn swap meet for $45, McInerney's blend of self-deprecation (his "eyebrows raised and jaw dropped" when H&G editors broached his name as wine columnist) and irreverence (on straw-covered Chianti bottles: the "bong component of choice in dorm rooms around the world") is refreshing juice. Unfortunately, as a compilation, it serves more to unmask a Eurocentric name-dropper: the bon-mot-coining D2 dilettante on an expense account who got the gig because he knew the editor. It's distressing, because there's so much to like here: "A Ticket to the Veneto" is a sparkling meld of ego and yeast; questioning whether or not to cellar wine, he concludes, "What could be more all-American than instant gratification?"; and his dead-on description of a Port hangover is quintessential McInerney. But numerous repetitions, imperceptible when published monthly, irritate when separated not by 30 days but 30 pages: Sauvignon Blanc's aroma of "pipi du chat" is funny the first time you read it, less so two essays later; likewise you won't find a single California piece that doesn't contain the words "dude" or "Helen Turley." And while it's admirable to break the mould of stuffy wine writing, McInerney's a bit long in the tastevin to adopt a "Wine Brat" posture comparing, for example, Martinelli Jackass Hill Zin more to "Free Bird" than "Jumpin' Jack Flash," or describing his first sip of Mouton "like hearing Nirvana on Saturday Night Live." Blame it on the editor, or maybe it just depends on how you devour Bacchus & Me. Sipped slowly, McInerney's words taste of the passionate amateur oenophile and skilled raconteur. Gulp 'em down and the finish is of the bestselling bon vivant with a blank check. --Tony Mason
Disappointing after 'A hedonist in the cellar' I read "A hedonist in the cellar" first and the reading was so enjoyable that I was looking forward to this one. It turned out that "Bacchus & Me" is not as good... Not to mention some repetitions between the two books, I think "Bacchus & Me" are more for the novice wheras "A hedonist in the cellar" would be more for already advised hedonists. I was sometimes bored with Bacchus and Me, despite the good writing and the humor sprinkled now and then, and I found the topics not so original (again as opposed and compared to "A hedonist in the cellar".
In a Nutshell, I recommend much more McInerney's second book about wine.
Wonderful I personally have not read the book, I gave it to my father for Christmas because he owns a liquor store. He really enjoyed the book and found it an easy read for someone beginning to learn about wine.
'Adventures' with a grape nut. "Since I have no real training in the official vocabulary of wine tasting--or for that matter, in gardening--you are more likely to find me comparing a wine to a movie, a poem, or a pop song than to an herb or a flower. These are the notes of a passionate amateur, a wordsmith with a wine jones" (p. xxiv).
Jay Mcinerney (1955) is not only a bestselling novelist (Bright Lights, Big City; Ransom; Story of My Life; Brightness Falls; The Last of the Savages; The Good Life), he is also an amateur oenephile (a "grape nut") and the wine columnist for House & Garden magazine. In his first compilation of wine essays drawn from his "Uncorked" column, McInerney proves he is "the best wine writer in America" (Salon), writing about his "first love" (Bordeaux), his initial prejudice against California wines ("Ripe, yes. Fruity, yes. So is Baywatch."), his nervous admiration for Helen Turley ("the wine goddess"), the "cult of Condrieu," champagne ("Beautiful Bubbleheads"), Burgundy ("If it's red, French, costs too much, and tastes like the water that's left in the vase after the flowers have died and rotted, it's probably Burgundy."), the most romantic wines, and pairing wine with food. McInerney brings his unique gift of terroir, wit, and opinion to these essays, making his book a must read for anyone who, like me, has a passion for really good wine and really good writing. And for those readers left wanting more wine adventures with McInerney, check out A Hedonist in the Cellar: Adventures in Wine (2006), ISBN: 978-1400044825.
G. Merritt
Prada and nothing but trash....... As an employee in the wine business, and an everyday drinker, I personally know that I cannot afford purchasing 2nd or 3rd growths on a regular basis, never mind 1st growths and '55 and '28 vintage Chateau d' Yquem. This book, although some chapters were very entertaining, was nothing but a name dropping debacle. Rather than focusing on the everyday enjoyment of wine, the book strived more towards depicting the great parties Jay McInerney has attended and all snobbishness that comes with it, i.e.; a rich man turning down Cristal champagne because it was not Krug, McInerney's fear of getting wine stains on his prada clothes, and the infamous Millenium Party where he and other famous wine and food representatives had the pleasure of trying everything under the banner of luxury. I personally do not know Jancis Robinson or Sommelier Jean-Luc Le Du, and likewise I know at last 30 people who do not know them either; hence, speaking about their parties on almost every chapter (and this is not a long book, 250 pages) does not help me choose an everyday wine. Although I can imagine what an experience it must be to taste such wines, I do not need some name-dropping writer telling me that I can only enjoy wine by taking out my credit card and purchasing Petrus at $5,000 a bottle. I know I can have just as much fun, on an average day, with my girlfriend and a $20 bottle of Guigal's Crozes Hermitage.
Not your average Wine book I'll admit it I bought this collection of wine essays because I liked the title. Also, because there was a blurb in the dust jacket about French and German wine. I began reading the chapters in order of interest, not in the order in the book. After the first essay I was blown away with the descriptions. McInerney doesn't talk about wine like the rest of them. I thought, "this guy writes so well, this is like reading a novel." Then referring to the dust jacket again I discovered he um well has experience in that area too. Despite being fun to read, McInerney packs a lot of information into each essay. This book will not tell you everything you want to know about wine - it isn't an intro to wine collecting or a reference to keep through the ages as you collect wine. It is a collection of unique musings on the wonderful subject of wine. I loved it.
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Trevor
