IT STANDS TO REASON THAT IF OUR FOODS ARE NOW LIGHTER AND MORE DYNAMIC, OUR WINES SHOULD BE ALSO. A longtime champion of the victimized wine consumer, Willie Gluckstern debunks the myths and misinformation surrounding the (allegedly) complex subject of wine. His straightforward advice includes: * The wines that go BEST with food -- and why. * A cure for label worship: "There are just as many lousy $60 bottles as $3.99 bottles." * How to avoid getting ripped off in stores and restaurants. * How to choose a great wineshop: "Do they know where Italy is?" * Dreary housekeeping tips, such as storage, decanting, saving opened wine, and "that sulfite thing." Plus, the straight poop on oak, "the MSG of wine," a few well-chosen words for greedy restaurants and retailers ("Those bastards!"), and an unprecedented expose of mass-market Champagne, including how to find the good stuff by cracking the secret label code. Irreverent, informative, and controversial, The Wine Avenger is indispensable for beginners as well as enthusiasts.

Author Biography

Willie Gluckstern, an outspoken critic of wine snobbery, label worship, and over-oaked Chardonnay, is the founder of Wines for Food, a consumer wine school in New York City. He has written the wine lists for hundreds of Manhattan restaurants, and is the purchasing director for the popular wineshop Nancy's Wines in New York City. He lives in New York City with his moldering 8-track tape collection.