Genre:
Humor/Culture/Non-Fiction
Description:
“Do you like wine but don’t know anything about it except it’s 1)
Alcoholic and 2) Wet? Well, Alicia Bien is here to remedy that. Pronto!
Here's a collection of wine stories, the highs—and lows—of Alicia’s
own evolution as a wine drinker from novice to—many bottles later—an expert
wine bottle opener. These pages contain an alphabet’s worth of wine stories
from 'Drinking Alone' and 'How the Army Changed My Life’, to ‘Ullage Uvula, U
Know’ and ‘Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah, Zip-A-Dee-Ay, My Oh My What a Zinfandel Day’.
So grab a bottle, sit back and enjoy. CHEERS!”
Author:
“Raised in Ohio, Alicia Bien received a Bachelor's Degree in
Literature and a Master's in English Linguistics. She is a Fulbright Scholar,
wine lover and comedy fan. While interning in the U.S. Senate, she saw lots of
funny things.
Drawing on life's humorous experiences, Alicia writes and performs
comedy. She studied sketch and improv at Second City, Hollywood and the Upright
Citizens Brigade.
She lives in California with her husband and adopted cat.”
Her blog looks like a fun site to visit.
Appraisal:
Every now and then I have to step away from my fantasy diet and read
something… well, more down-to-earth. As
I was scanning the books submitted for review database, I came across Evolution of a Wine Drinker and thought,
“I like wine! Perhaps I could educate myself a little.” So I stepped outside of
my comfort zone to review a non-fiction novella, hoping some of the wine
culture will rub off on me. These are stories of Ms. Bien’s experiences with
wine, wine tasting, and vacations centered on wine regions. Bien takes her wine
very seriously and has taken the time to educate us novices on the finer points
of all things wine.
It all started in college (go figure) when she was looking for an
elective and her academic advisor pointed out a “wine tasting class” in the
catalog… She grinned. So begins Alicia Bien’s love of wine. She learned how to
hold each wine glass, judge a wine by its color, how swirling wine in the glass
aerates the wine to improve its flavor, and how to smell the wines to help your
taste buds better define and appreciate the flavors and nuances of a wine. She
studied grape varietals, wine growing regions of the world, and their
histories. In time her instructor managed to turn a college beer chugger into a
passionate wine drinker.
This book is full of short personal essays cleverly arranged from A-Z
which include humorous and educational stories from Ms. Bien’s adventures with
wine and wine country not only here in the states but around the world. Along
with stories about her friends and their own wine tasting club parties, which
almost convinced me to try hosting one. :) This book is a fast, pleasant read
that will leave a smile on your face. It may also make you feel a little more
confident in choosing your next bottle of wine. This review was written while
enjoying a glass of Belle, a sweet red wine from Red 55 Winery located in
Texas. Ha! See, I never would have checked that out if I hadn’t read this book!
FYI:
Added for
Reprise Review: Evolution
of a Wine Drinker was the winner in the Humor category for B&P 2015
Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran September 21, 2014
Format/Typo
Issues:
I came across no editing or formatting issues.
Rating:
***** Five Stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 20-25,000 words
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