Annual Cookbook Issue : Hugh’s Back . . . and Bigger Than Ever

Of the myriad ways to categorize wine, the most basic is by the region in which the grapes grow. It was that simple premise that led Hugh Johnson to write “The World Atlas of Wine.”

Simple though that approach may seem today, back in 1971 the project was seen in this country as novel, for it codified what all France has known for centuries: The area in which the grapes grow dictates pretty much what the wines will be like.

The book was arranged simply enough: Each region of the world that grew wine grapes got its own brief section with detailed, full-color maps, pictures and labels. The text gave tyro and expert alike insight about each area’s wines.

Since the history of wine is so long, I would have thought constant revision of the atlas unnecessary, but the fourth edition of “The World Atlas of Wine” (Simon & Schuster: $50; 320 pages) breaks new ground and remains atop the latest news from the world’s wine regions.

In the nine years since the last edition, much has changed in the wine business. The text here is completely re-written from the third edition; the maps and charts are better than ever; the commentary is more analytical, the design more appealing.

This book is not just a stupefying gazetteer, but a remarkable achievement that could teach a number of governments about their own wine-growing regions. This is a work that must be on every wine lover’s book shelf.

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Of all the wine books to hit the market this year, the weightiest, in more ways than one, is Jancis Robinson’s monumental and astoundingly thorough “Oxford Companion to Wine” (Oxford University Press: 1994; $49.95; 1,088 pages).

Robinson did massive amounts of research on this work that fits well within the scope of the Oxford Companion reference series.

One could, I suppose, read this bowling ball of a book cover to cover, but its fascination is in two other uses. First, it may be used to settle bets and answer knotty questions arising in wine-speak chat. (If a snobby friend says he wishes you had been there when he opened a Banyuls, you don’t have to fret over what Banyuls is, just look on Page 89.)

Second, you could open it at random and read odd vin -related subjects treated with care and detail, including a four-page section on wine literature and a number of biographies of wine personalities.

Robinson spent four years on the research and writing. Her expertise shows in a lively, informed, literate writing style. No, you might not want to carry this companion around with you, but as a constant source of lore and data about wine, it should be on the tasting table of every oenophile.

Fine wine in California started in Sonoma County, but the Napa Valley lays claim to the state’s greatest wine heritage, and historian Charles Sullivan has sewn up the threads of this often tattered quilt.

Sullivan’s “Napa Wine: A History” (Wine Appreciation Guild: 1994; $29.95; 438 pages) has neither the lurid details of James Conaway’s land-use epic “Napa” nor the detail of William Heintz’s “Wine Country: A History of Napa Valley,” but it is beautifully written and is charmingly illustrated by local legend/artist Earl Thollander. What’s more, it contains photos from archives I never knew existed. A superb work that adds much to--and clarifies misconceptions about--the nation’s most famed wine region.

Wine encyclopedias abound, and Johnson’s “Modern Encyclopedia of Wine” is so complete it seems the “Larousse Encyclopedia of Wine” (Larousse: 1994; $40; 608 pages) is unnecessary. However, the work is well written and well organized, has an excellent index and is a good introduction for newcomers to wine.

Definitely for the wine expert is “Vintage Talk,” by Dennis Schaefer (Capra Press: 1994; $15.95; 304 pages). Twenty California winemakers, in question-and-answer format, tell what they do to make great wine. There are drawbacks: The emphasis is on the Central Coast, a number of brilliant craftsmen are left out, and the book desperately needs an index. But the text is interesting reading.

Two updated pocket wine guides are both worth having, since they are structured differently and each has value for dedicated wine lovers. “Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Encyclopedia of Wine 1995” (Fireside/Simon & Schuster: $12; 216 pages) remains the king of such works for its succinct, incisive tone and good vintage charts, among other attributes. This 18th edition, “designed to take the panic out of buying,” as Johnson says, is arranged by region. It is a marvel of detail in a space that still fits in purse or glovebox.

“Oz Clarke’s Wine Advisor 1994” (Fireside: 1994; $12; 288 pages) offers the British critic’s witty perceptions about various producers with a different format: all alphabetical. Some subjects get full-page treatment, others scant attention, but the layout is easy to use and the text fun to read.

Another pocket guide that may help in buying wine is the 12th annual “California Wine Winners,” ($6.95, or $8.75 including postage from Varietal Fair, 4022 Harrison Grade Road, Sebastopol, Calif. 95472; 174 pages). It is a compilation of the top award-winning California wines from nine of the nation’s major wine competitions. Wines are ranked by a system that awards more points for a gold medal than a silver.

More serious and scientific is “To Your Health: Two Medical Doctors Explore the Health Benefits of Wine,” by Martin R. Lipp and David N. Whitten (HarperCollins West: 1994: $18; 192 pages).

The authors address questions such as fetal alcohol syndrome, sulfites in wine, and how wine affects the function of the heart. Much of this material is drawn from scientific literature, most of which already has appeared in other forms (notably in the 1992 book, “The French Paradox and Beyond,” by Lewis Perdue).

A particularly interesting section is Teach Your Children, in which the doctors tackle the question of how children, teen-agers and under-age-21 youths, both here and in Southern Europe, typically deal with alcohol--and how America may be on the wrong track with its “just say no” approach.

The following three works on wine are not recommended.

* “Champagne and Caviar, A Connoisseur’s Survival Guide,” by Arthur von Wiesenberger (Capra Press: 1994; $39.95; 237 pages). The owner of the successful Nipper’s Champagne and caviar clubs has bitten off more than he could chew. The profiles of 20 of Champagne’s finest producers aren’t bad, but the question-and-answer sessions with winemakers are as tame as warm milk, and much of the material seems awfully dated.

* “Wine Magic,” by Alan R. and Sandra L. Putnam (Salandi Publishers: 1994; $14.95; 260 pages). Intended as a lighthearted guidebook, the text isn’t as funny as I had hoped. It has a number of errors, and the research is scanty and not as up-to-date as a 1994 book ought to be.

* “Parker’s Wine Guide” (Franklin Electronic Publishing: 1994; $79.95) is a calculator device that is small and compact. It gives ratings for hundreds of the world’s wines from “Robert Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide,” which was released a year ago.

The troubles with the electronic version are many. First and foremost, the viewer gets only raw scores for wines--most of which are no longer available--and only vague prices (such as “$25 to $50”). Moreover, there is little commentary on the wines, to let the viewer know if a wine is ready to drink or should be cellared.

Better is “Wine Spectator Magazine’s Ultimate Guide to Buying Wine,” (M. Shanken Communications, Inc.: 1994; $22.95; 751 pages). The numerical scores are often accompanied by descriptions of the wine and accurate prices.

And finally, a charming bit of wine whimsy: Joni McNutt’s “In Praise of Wine,” (Capra Press: 1994; $12.95; 236 pages). McNutt has compiled hundreds of wine quotations and poems.

And what better way to close a dry recitation of vinous literature than with one of McNutt’s better quotes, from the late Bordeaux proprietor and author Alexis Lichine: “There is no substitute for pulling corks.”

Berger on TimesLink

* Want help selecting a wine to serve with the Christmas goose? A Champagne for New Year’s Eve? Ask Times wine writer Dan Berger on the Wining & Dining bulletin board on TimesLink, The Times’ online service. For information on TimesLink, call (800) 792-LINK, ext. 274.