COOKBOOK WATCH

One always takes pause when a definitive reference work is revised: Is it worth the money to buy a book you already have?

A lot of us have done well with the first 1983 edition of “Hugh Johnson’s Modern Encyclopedia of Wine,” even as it went through a couple of revisions (the latest major one in 1991). But the wine world seems to be changing faster than ever and the time seems right for the fourth edition of Johnson’s greatest work, this one from Simon & Schuster ($40).

Among the most useful new material is Johnson’s writing on maturing and emerging wine regions, including Chile, Australia, South Africa, Morocco, Israel and Russia. And, of course, he covers new winemakers in established regions. What we will miss from the first edition: the lovely watercolor illustrations of grape varieties and the charming charcoal drawings of winemakers, chateaux and especially burly, shirtless grape stompers in the Burgundy chapter and the “How Wine Is Made” graphic. Serviceable color photos illustrate the new edition.

Seven years after the publication of his highly regarded “Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making,” James Peterson has come out with a thicker, more lavishly illustrated edition (Van Nostrand Reinhold, $44.95) that demonstrates the growing influence of Asian cooking on mainstream American and international cuisine. The original edition was especially strong on classic French sauces and their modern counterparts. Certainly Peterson considered our tastes for lighter sauces and essences that use less butter in 1991, but in this new edition he adds more infused herb and chile oils, a chapter on pasta sauces and, most impressively, a chapter on basic Asian sauces that surveys Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Korean and other cuisines. Is it worth a reinvestment? That depends on your personal cooking style. But if you don’t already own Peterson’s book, it’s better than ever and worth consideration.