Clarke & Spurrier's Fine Wine Guide Book

When two noses such as those of Steven Spurrier and Oz Clarke collude, the results are bound to be extraordinary. Spurrier is probably best known for the notorious blind tasting in Paris in the 1970s in which world-class experts ranked a Californian wine higher than the grandest Bordeaux crus classés. The energetically egregious Clarke has consistently managed to combine a breezy style with the highest standards of taste and discrimination. This guide is aimed unapologetically at the top end of the market; and with an aristocratic disregard of price (the wines are likely to be expensive, some of them grotesquely so) the emphasis is firmly on luxury and quality. The concentration of top-end wines in this book is intoxicating in the extreme. As Clarke and Spurrier review the chateaux of Bordeaux, the phrases take on a kind of music: "beautiful dense fruit, never too heavy nor too extracted"; "true botrytis richness and depth"; "seduces when young but can improve for several decades"; "deep smoothness of fruit but also balancing tannins". The judgements are not handed down lightly. No South African wine, for example, is awarded the top rating of three stars, despite the extraordinary quality of wines produced in the country. At this level, the competition is severe. Whether your intention is investment or pleasure, Clarke and Spurrier will show you how to spend your money wisely. --Robin DavidsonRead More