| ccessful restaurant, the wine list is the biggest | | | | fully meets diners' increasingly sophisticated needs |
| moneymaker. That long-time cliche of the | | | | and simultaneously maximizes the returns on wine |
| restaurant industry may be more true now than | | | | investments. |
| ever before. Last year, wine overtook beer as | | | | The problem is, unlike France and Italy, which |
| the most common alcoholic beverage consumed | | | | have centuries-old traditions of enjoying wine, the |
| in the United States, a testament to its | | | | U.S. is a relative newcomer to the joys of the |
| broadening appeal. | | | | vine. As a result, much of the discussion around |
| Its popularity is becoming so pervasive that U.S. | | | | wine in this country has been rarefied and much |
| consumption is poised to surpass that of Italy and | | | | of the writing dense, elitist and inaccessible. This |
| France. Researchers at both the Wine Institute, a | | | | has made the world of wine seem more arcane |
| California trade association, and the International | | | | than it really is and the design of an inspired wine |
| Organisation of Vine and Wine, a Paris-based | | | | list more elusive than it has to be. |
| intergovernmental wine standards body, expect | | | | Now, with the release of Thomson Delmar |
| Americans to become the largest consumers of | | | | Learning's "About Wine" (Thomson Delmar |
| wine by 2010. | | | | Learning, $54.95), chefs, hospitality professionals |
| That's why, for many customers, the quality of | | | | and consumers finally have the guide to the |
| the wine list is as important a factor in deciding | | | | wonderful world of wine-and wine |
| whether or not to frequent (or return to) a | | | | strategy-they've long been searching for. Written |
| restaurant as the quality of the food or the | | | | in the informative, accessible style characteristic |
| location or atmosphere of the place. Therefore, it | | | | of other culinary guides in the admired About |
| has become essential for restaurant managers | | | | series, "About Wine" offers the basic information |
| and chefs to have a thorough understanding of | | | | that will serve as a foundation for both a |
| wine-how to taste and evaluate it-to be | | | | successful career in wine and increased |
| knowledgeable about all the varietals, growing | | | | enjoyment of it. Professionals and consumers |
| regions and winemaking methods and, most | | | | both stand to gain valuable insights from this |
| importantly, to develop a business strategy that | | | | important new guide. |