Buying a gift for someone who knows their way around a wineglass is no walk in the vineyard. Have they tried this bottle before? Did they like it? Have they moved onto a different varietal?
This is when swapping a bottle for a book about bottles is not an unthinkable deed – with the latter also lasting much longer upon the shelf or coffee table.
From the historical background of each grape variety to detailed itineraries of weekends away in Australia and New Zealand’s best wine regions to tips for improving blind tasting skills, we’ve curated an edit of coffee table books about wine for the oenophile in your circle.
6 full-bodied coffee table books about wine
Wine Trails: Australia & New Zealand by Lonely Planet Food, $26.95 (usually $34.99), Lonely Planet
Wine Grapes: A Complete Guide to 1368 Vine Varieties, including Their Origins and Flavours by Julia Harding et al., from $180.80 Penguin UK
The Sommelier’s Atlas of Taste, $48.97 (usually $69.99), Random House US
Wine Folly: Magnum Edition by Madeline Puckette and Justin Hammack, $33.08, Penguin Putnam Inc