The Second Glass

The Internet is a great resource for wine but the comprehensive information still lies in books. While there are hundreds of books that promise to make you a pro, take away the snobbery or offer gorgeous glossy pictures of vineyards, there are only a few books that are essential to every collection.

Wine Bible

by Karen MacNeil ($20)

If you only plan on buying one wine book in your entire life, make sure it’s this one. The 900 page bohemouth gives you the basics on every wine region, style and grape. It’s the perfect starting point and I don’t know a single wino who doesn’t own this book. No need to read the thing cover to cover, simply grab a chapter of interest (perhaps you’re about to drink a Valpolacello) and read a few pages of wine speak in basic English. MacNeil doesn’t go very in-depth about any specific region, but she doesn touch on all the important aspects. This book is the perfect starting place for any wino’s library.

The World Atlas of Wine

by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson ($50)

This book was recently completely overhauled and the 6th edition is a total rockstar. The book has maps of every wine region in the world, detailing every single major vineyard. That’s right, if you happen to be sitting down drinking a 2001 Marques de Riscal Reserva Rioja from Spain, you can lookup the winery in the index and actually see a dot on a map as to where the vineyard is. For people who are obsessed with locations and can stare at maps for hours, this is a no brainer gift. The written info about each region is also incredibly in-depth, without taking up too much space. Oh, did we mention that it’s written by Hugh Johnson?

The Oxford Companion to Wine

by Jancis Robinson ($65)

This is the encyclopedia of wine you will use on a regular basis. Lookup works you don’t understand on bottles or that your snobby friends toss your way over dinner. Wow your non-snobby friends with awesome history lessons about grapes and where they orginally came from. Written by famous British wino Jancis Robinson, this is about as comprehensive as you’re going to get.