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University of California Press

Washington Wines and Wineries

The Essential Guide
by Paul Gregutt (Author)
Paperback eBook
Price: $32.95 / £28.00
Publication Date: Oct 2010
Edition: 2nd Edition
Title Details:
Rights: World
Pages: 360
ISBN: 9780520947276
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About the Book

As the global wine industry reinvents itself for twenty first–century palates, Washington is poised to become as important and influential as California on the world stage. National and international attention has brought interest in the state’s wines to an all-time high. Yet, in just the past few years, a tidal wave of change has rolled over the state’s wine industry. To keep wine enthusiasts thoroughly up to date, Paul Gregutt has now completely revised and expanded his critically acclaimed guide to Washington’s best grapes, vineyards, wines, winemakers, and wineries. With twice as many winery and vineyard profiles, updated tasting notes, and new recommended producers for each grape variety, this edition of Washington Wines and Wineries will continue to be the definitive reference on the subject.

About the Author

Paul Gregutt has covered Washington State's wine industry since the mid-1980s. He is the wine columnist for the Seattle Times and other Blethen newspapers in Washington, the Northwest editor for Wine Enthusiast magazine, and writes the Northwest Watch column for Vineyard & Winery Management. His blog (at www.paulgregutt.com) offers daily updates on Washington wines and wineries, as well as other topics of general interest to the wine community.

Table of Contents

List of Wineries
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction

PART 1. HISTORY AND TERROIR

1. Which Side of the Potomac? A Brief History of
Washington Wines
2. The AVAs
3. The Grapes
4. The Top Twenty Vineyards

PART 2. WINERY PROFILES

5. The Five-Star Wineries
6. The Four-Star Wineries
7. The Three-Star Wineries
8. The Rising Stars

Epilogue: What’s Next?

Paul Gregutt’s Annual Top 100 Lists of
Washington State Wines

Top 100 Wines for 2009
Top 100 Wines for 2008
Top 100 Wines for 2007
Top 100 Wines for 2006

Index
Maps

Reviews

“A superb book. . . . For those wishing to explore Washington wines in greater depth.”
— The Wine Advocate
“Critical, in-depth look at the wine culture of Washington. . . Essential.”
— New York Times
“A serious analysis of Washington wine that is seriously interesting.”
— Wine Economist
You can live without the new edition, but only if you have the original. To have both is. . . an embarrassment of riches.
— Cornichon Blog
“A very good read and a bible for anyone eager to tap into a region on a mission.”
— Jancisrobinson.com
“A must-read for any wine lover heading to the rainy region.”
— Wine Enthusiast
“Paul Gregutt has done it again! If you have any interest in Washington State wines, you need to get a copy of his latest book.”
— Wine Peeps
“Quite simply the best book ever on the wines of Washington state.”
— California Grapevine
“This new second, revised and updated edition remains the quintessential reference book on the subject. “
— Santa Barbara News-Press
“A refreshingly unpedantic way to keep track of all those wines now appearing in stores.”
— International Herald Tribune
“A snapshot of this region on the move.”
— Wine & Spirits Magazine
“A thoughtful, detailed and critical look at Washington State’s wine industry in this completely revised and updated edition. The state’s AVAs, top vineyards, grapes and the most distinctive wineries are profiled in Gregutt’s breezy, at times humorous style.”
— Wine Enthusiast
“Gregutt excels where others have not. . . . Now the book of record for the Washington wine scene.”
— The Wine News
“It's as good a guide to the subject as can be found in print. I urge you to get a copy and drink it in. . . . Very useful, and very right on in its details.”
— The Rosengarten Report
“Offers educated insights--details about the state’s wine-growing regions, a rundown of the grape varieties grown here and mini-profiles of more than 100 wineries.”
— Seattle Times
“Offers insights into those who make the wines that make the difference. This is as valuable and essential to comprehending our wine region as any other information. . . . The book's advice about the region's wine is worth heeding.”
— Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“Pulls no punches in recommending top bottlings based on overall vintage history, as well as profiling the vineyards that offer the most consistent quality. Fascinating history and profiles of leading winemakers put a human face on this productive, and promising, region.”
— Wine Enthusiast
“Read this book for its focus on the vineyards, grapes and important producers of this burgeoning wine region. With the number of existing wineries, counted in the dozens only a decade ago, having passed 500 last year, Washington is going to be more significant with each succeeding vintage. This make a handy reference.”
— Wine Spectator
“Reads more critically than its first edition, with the author's opinion taking a more central role.”
— Zester Daily
“You can live without the new edition, but only if you have the original. To have both is like having a second case of Leonetti for everyday drinking, an embarrassment of riches.”
— Cornichon.com
A valuable resource for buying Washington wines and a great read about the visionaries who saw potential in the desert east of the Cascades.
— Sunset Magazine
Approachable enough for the beginning wine enthusiast and rich enough in detail, history, and opinion to please the most avid and knowledgeable wine devotee.
— Northwest Palate Magazine
For those who want to gain an education on the country’s second largest wine region (as well as become infected by the author’s enthusiasm for it), this is a seminal book. There is nothing else available today that explains from a local expert’s point of view just why American wine buyers should look beyond California for great wine.
— Vinography
The most comprehensive and authoritative book on Washington wines. Paul has a lively style that makes the story of Washington wine country come alive.
— Nat Decants
"A thoughtful, detailed and critical look at Washngton State's wine industry."
— Wine Enthusiast
Praise for the First Edition:

"Read this book for its focus on the vineyards, grapes and important producers of this burgeoning wine region….a handy reference."—Wine Spectator

"[Gregutt] looks in depth at the land, its people and its wines….A refreshingly unpedantic way to keep track of all those wines now appearing in stores."—Eric Asimov, The New York Times

"A superb book….For those wishing to explore Washington wines in greater depth."—The Wine Advocate

"[A] book to study, take notes on, and savor over time in order to absorb its considerable value….For those who want to gain an education on the country's second largest wine region (as well as become infected by the author's enthusiasm for it), this is a seminal book."—Vinography

"The most comprehensive and authoritative book on Washington wines. Paul has a lively style that makes the story of Washington wine country come alive."—Natalie Maclean, Nat Decants

"A timely, useful, and most enjoyable addition to wine literature."—The World of Fine Wine

"No one who loves Washington wines—in fact, no one serious about wine—should fail to get a copy."—Oz Clarke