McGinn - A very nice glass of wine : a guided journal

First published in the United States of America in 2015 by Chronicle Books LLC.
Originally published in the United Kingdom in 2013 by Macmillan.

Copyright 2013 by Helen McGinn.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

McGinn, Helen.
A very nice glass of wine : a guided journal / Helen McGinn.
pages cm
1. Wine and wine making. I. Title.

TP548.M4674 2014
641.22--dc23

ISBN 978-1-4521-2797-2 (pb)
ISBN 978-1-4521-4115-2 (epub2, mobi)

Designed by Cat Grishaver

Visit Helen McGinn at .

Chronicle Books LLC
680 Second Street
San Francisco, California 94107
www.chroniclebooks.com

This guided journal will help you explore, discover, and, ultimately, choose wine with confidence. Its about ensuring that when you do decide to settle down with a glass of wine after a busy day, its going to be worth it. On the shelf in my study at home is a row of long-ago-emptied wine bottles, each one marked with a date and occasion in silver pen, including a bottle of 1988 vintage Champagne that marks the year the Husband and I got together as teenagers. It was a wedding present and we imbibed it years later, to celebrate the birth of Eldest Boy. I havent been lucky enough to have it since, but Ill never forget how I felt when I drank it. The thing is, I love wine. Really love it. And I dont just mean whats in the glass. Obviously thats a really big part, and I love that theres always more to discover, but for me wine is about so much more than that. Its about bringing us together around a table. Wine makes us sit down (I especially like that part) and converse. Wine connects us with places, with stories, and, best of all, with each other. Almost twenty years ago I decided Id like to make my working way in the world with glass in hand, literally, because I liked what was in the glass. Now, a few years on, I can see that it wasnt just about that; it was as much about the peoplethose who make wine and those who drink it. One of my favorite nights in my not-particularly-social calendar these days is my book-club evening. Sure, we talk about the book, but really its about a group of friends getting together around a table, sharing funny, sad, mad, and sometimes very bad stories, mixed in with opinions, food, andof coursea really nice glass of wine.

Ive spent my entire working life in the wine industry, feeling for much of it that, like Charlie Bucket, Id won the Golden Ticket. For years I was a supermarket wine buyer. When the first of my three children came along, I gave up the travel for the travel cot, and now work part-time in wine. Friends have always asked me for wine recommendations, whether its for everyday drinking, slightly posh dinners, parties, weddings, christenings/naming days, anniversaries, or big birthdays ending in a zero. And theyve always told me how the great wall of wine they face each week in the market can feel utterly overwhelming. Consequently, for years I sent a regular email to friends whod asked for recommendations, especially on good wine deals, and the title of that email was The Knackered Mothers Wine Club. And that was where it all started; the blog was born one night when the Husband was away and Id had enough of working late with the laptop on the sofa. I thought that sharing my own weekly wine purchasestwo wines a week, whatever I happened to be drinkingmight help inspire others to try something different as well as unearth some hidden gems and properly good deals along the way.

I blogged every weekusually with a glass within reachwhatever my mood: happy, not so happy, or just plain knackered. For the first few months the blog was read religiously; by my sister, mother, and the Husband. Then I started to get comments from people who were (a) not related to me and (b) seemingly normal, interested in wine, and wanting to know more about it. And so the weekly posts continued, with added video blogs and tasting tips, among other stuff. I received emails from women telling me theyd never realized Chablis was made from Chardonnay grapes (fact) or that legs on a glass was a sign of alcohol content rather than quality. In short, my blog had hit on something. These were busy, knowledge-thirsty women, reading my blog and enjoying learning more about wine. It was a revelation. My audience started to grow and suddenly there I was, doing what I love, namely sharing my thoughts on good wine and helping others grow in confidence when choosing, buying, and talking about wine, while encouraging them to try new things.

How I drink now is very different from how I drank before I had children, not least because looking after children with a hangover is rarely worth the pain. More than that, as I get older Im realizing, actually, I dont want to drink as much as I used to. The shallow part of me worries about the extra calories Im taking on; the less shallow part of me knows that it isnt good for my general health. The recommended weekly allowance is about seven glasses of wine a week, depending on the strength of the wine and the size of the glass. Pre-children, that was my weekend right there (sound familiar?). Nowadays, I go wine-free at least two nights a week. Overall, I drink less but I drink better. By that, I mean that instead of drinking the same wine week in, week out, I shop around and try different things whenever possible. With so much choice on the shelves and online, you could try a different wine every week and still taste only the tip of the wine-iceberg. I hope that the information in this journal will help you step outside your wine comfort zone and give you the knowledge you need to get more from your glass of wine, to lead you by the handor perhaps the nosethrough what to drink with Sunday roasts, for book-club tastings, TV dinners, and more. You will feel inspired not to drink more wine, but to drink better wine. Im going to help you think about tasting wines properly, learn how to make tasting notes, and not feel like a pretentious wine-freak writing down what you do and dont like.