Le Cordon Bleu Wine Essentials (Hardcover)

Foreword by Monsieur Andre J. Cointreau, President of Le Cordon Bleu International 6

1 Buying and Selling Wine 8

The basics for buyers 10

What does the bottle tell you? 14

Where to buy wine 22

Starting a wine collection 28

Investment wines 36

Selling wine 38

2 Storing Wine 40

Looking after your wine 42

Matching wine and food 46

Wine with canapes 52

Managing your collection 54

Troubleshooting 56

When is wine ready to drink? 58

Wine with fish and shellfish 60

3 Tasting Wine 62

The tasting sequence 64

Step 1: In the glass 66

Step 2: On the nose 70

Step 3: On the palate 74

Wine with meat 78

Recognizing good and bad wine 80

Wine with game 82

Recognizing grape varieties 84

Wine with poultry 90

Attending a tasting 92

Wine with vegetarian dishes 96

Educating your palate 102

Wine with spicy foods 104

Ordering wine in a restaurant 106

Wine with desserts 110

4 Serving Wine 112

Getting the temperature right 114

Wine with cheese 116

Opening a wine bottle 118

Food with Red Bordeaux and Tuscan wines 122

Food with Red Burgundy and Pinot Noir 126

Choosing the right glass 130

Food with Hermitage, Cote Rotie, and Shiraz 134

Cleaning glasses and decanters 136

Food with Barolo and Barbaresco 138

Keeping wine fresh 140

Wine etiquette 142

Food with Rioja and Tempranillo 144

Planning for a special occasion 146

Food with Chardonnay, Chablis and White Burgundy 148

Red wine drinks 150

Food with Sancerre, Pouilly-Fume, and Sauvignon Blanc 152

White wine drinks 154

Sparkling white wine and Champagne drinks 156

Food with Riesling 158

5 Fortified Wine and Grape Spirits 160

Sherry 162

Food with Gewurtztraminer, Pinot Gris, and Sylvaner 164

Port 166

Madeira and Marsala 168

Food with Sauternes and Muscat 170

Brandy 172

6 The Story of Wine 174

In the vineyard 176

In the winery 178

In the winery cellar 180

Food with Rose 182

Glossary 184

Useful addresses 186

Index 188

Acknowledgements 192