The Geography of Wine How Landscapes, Cultures, Terroir, and the Weather Make a Good Drop

by Sommers, Brian J.

• ISBN13: 9780452288904
• ISBN10: 0452288908
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-02-26
• Publisher: Plume

Summary

Wine is more than taste, smell, and appearance it is a reflection of a place and its people. Why is Bordeaux a great place for red wines? Why do some places produce Rieslings and others produce Chardonnay? A fun and fascinating examination of terroir (the French word for the geography of a vineyard) this book takes connoisseurs and potential connoisseurs on a tour of wine regions, and explains the principles geographers use to understand the critical factors that make up the "wine character" of a place. From the Loire Valley to Napa Valley, Madeira to South Africa, Australia to Chile, The Geography of Wine is an entertaining and informative introduction to viticulture for worldly wine lovers everywhere.

Table of Contents

Geography and the Study of Wine	p. 1
Wine Landscapes and Regions	p. 11
Saint-Emilion	p. 19
The Climatology of Viticulture	p. 23
Spain	p. 40
Microclimate and Wine	p. 45
The Rhine and Its Tributaries	p. 55
Grapes, Soil, and Terrior	p. 59
Bordeaux	p. 78
Biogeography and the Grape	p. 83
The Loire Valley	p. 95
Viticulture, Agriculture, and Natural Hazards	p. 101
California	p. 122
Wine and Geographic Information Systems	p. 127
Oregon and Washington State	p. 136
Winemaking and Geography	p. 141
Oporto and Cadiz	p. 151
Wine Diffusion, Colonialism, and Political Geography	p. 157
South Africa and Chile	p. 169
Urbanization and the Wine Geography	p. 175
Burgundy	p. 179
Economic Geography and Wine	p. 187
Australia	p. 195
Communism, Geography, and Wine	p. 199
Eastern Europe	p. 207
Geography and Wine's Competitors: Beer, Cider, and Distilled Spirits	p. 211
Scotland	p. 219
Wine, Culture, and the Geography of Temperance	p. 223
America East of the Rockies	p. 230
Regional Identity, Wine, and Multinationals	p. 235
Champagne	p. 249
Localism and Wine Tourism	p. 253
Central Italy	p. 259
Where Wine Takes Me	p. 263
Appendix	p. 273
Further Reading	p. 277
Index	p. 281
Photo Credits	p. 291
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.