A Contemplation of Wine

Journalist and World War I frontline reporter, Hubert Warner Allen (1881-1968) casts an observant eye over the way wine appears in literature, from the words of Roman connoisseurs to the excesses of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, taking in the wisdom of 18th-century epicurean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin and the sagacity of legendary wine writers George Saintsbury and André Simon. Warner Allen's observations are both fascinating and highly entertaining. As Harry Eyres says: 'Literary, historical, discursive, personal: this is very much the opposite of modern wine writing, and presents another era seen through a glass darkly.'

ABOUT THE ACADEMIE DU VIN LIBRARY CLASSIC EDITIONS SERIES

The Classic Editions breathe new life into some of the finest wine-related titles written in the English language over the last 150 years. Although these books are very much products of their time - a time when the world of fine wine was confined mostly to the frontiers of France and the Iberian Peninsula and a First Growth Bordeaux or Grand Cru Burgundy wouldn't be beyond the average purse - together they recapture a world of convivial, enthusiastic amateurs and larger-than-life characters whose love of fine vintages mirrored that of life itself. Many of the titles are still much in demand, as a glance on Amazon will show. The Académie du Vin Library is proud to be republishing them, along with insightful introductions by our favourite wine writers of the present day.