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Mark Oldman’s book, Oldman’s Guide to Outsmarting Wine, 108 Ingenious Shortcuts to Navigate the World of Wine with Confidence and Style, is not only a great novice primer, but it’s also a great professional resource. Regardless of its title about “outsmarting wine,” those of us who work in the wine business know that the more we know, the more we know we don’t know. With 15 years in the wine business behind me, I can honestly say that everyday I continue to learn something new.
My specialty is very different from Mark Oldman’s; so, I see Mark’s Guide to Outsmarting Wine as a tremendous resource, and am blessed to now have this book in my wine book library.
Discovering wine is like watching a continually opening lotus, with no end in sight to the amount of petals given to the curious…. It’s a great hobby for those of us who spend lots of time wondering. Mark Oldman’s taken a subject with so many interesting facets and given each its own private voice; not in rigid sections, mind you, but interspersed here and there throughout the book.
Oldman’s Guide does just what it promises. It takes subject matter that might appear daunting to someone just starting to discover this enophylic passion of ours, and allows each reader to enjoy the subject matter in bits and pieces, ingesting in small bites. It’s not a book that immediately needs to be read from cover to cover. Instead, a reader can grasp a bit of information, hold it to his or her heart, running off to the next food and wine pairing feeling much more confident with an expanding knowledge base.
This book is loaded with nuggets of information that not only gets a newbee off and running with confidence, but it also keeps those of us who know a few things still learning in grand fashion.
What a great book… What a great treasure it would be for anyone who receives this book during this holiday season!
To purchase the book, you can go directly to Mark Oldman’s site, as well as the usual Amazon.com locations. Mark’s Website is a great place for all things “Mark.” As one of the country’s leading educators, you’ll learn where he’s currently teaching and appearing in New York City, what he’s now writing, and for whom.
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