Tony Aspler's Guide to New World Wines

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

Aspler, a regular wine columnist for the Toronto Star, has published at
least four previous books on wine and edits Winetidings magazine. As an
authority on wine, his position is unquestioned.

This handy book is the “Coles notes” version of Wine 101—a crash
course in getting all the conventions in place: wine-tasters’ jargon;
what glass to use; what wine to serve with various foods; ratings for
the vintages from various wineries.

The interesting twist is that the wines under discussion are all from
somewhere other than Europe. U.S. wineries and wines receive the most
attention, but there is also generous coverage of wines from Canada,
Mexico, South America, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

The text represents little more than a list of dos and don’ts, so its
value lies mainly in its usefulness as a reference for those who want
support in their wine-selecting decisions.

With Aspler’s endorsement, non-European wines take a leap ahead in
acceptability, so the book will undoubtedly prove to be of considerable
value as a promotional tool for North American vintners.