Italy in a Wineglass: The Story of Italy Through Its Wines

by Marc Millon

A leading travel writer guides readers on a sumptuous journey through time and flavor to understand how and why wine transformed Italy

Italy has a fascinating history, one that has profoundly influenced Western civilization. But the fact that it only became a unified nation in 1861 has meant that its rich and varied story is not well known, even to the 94 million visitors who travel there every year.

This book will change that. Italy in a Wineglass offers a digestible means into understanding Italy’s influence on our world by linking its history - events, eras, personalities, movements and more - to the country’s wonderful, varied and accessible wines.

From the Phoenicians to Dante, from fascism to feminism, the book delves into the events, individuals and movements throughout the centuries, seen through the prism of Italy’s wines and how those wines, in turn, have shaped our world. You will learn


Part history lesson and part wine tasting, Millon brings the flavors of Italy to life in a quenching tale of vinification and power, melding history, journalism, and travel with the sensations of Italy.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

336 pages, Hardcover

First published April 18, 2024

Reviews

[Benjamin Uke · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world loves Italy: its culture, art, food and fashion, the beauty of its landscapes, its famous cities—and, of course, its wine.

They say that every glass of wine tells a story, so if you get enough of the right wines together, can they tell a really big and complicated story? Can you tell the history of Italy through its wines?
Yes, it turns out.
It's a history of each form of wine and their own story, starting with uncorking of re-created Roman wine out of Mount Vesuvius and advancing tot he modern day. Aesthetics brand and pretense are secondary to a wine's unique ability to elicit an emotional response. This is written by someone by someone with true passion for the subject, the people, and the friends he made along the way.

4/5 while the a bit dry, it takes a wine-in-a million stray from the typical path of wine literature. No small praise from someone who's never found the subject interesting until he picked up this book.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book but the essays on the different wines was a bit too ad hoc and random. I very much enjoyed the history of Italy and its regions but felt the wine discussion at the end of each chapter did not really serve any purpose or logic. The two areas of wine and history seemed to be forced together. Next time I think I will just read a book on the history of Italy and a seperate book on the wines of Italy.

[Pi]

WINO jest przyprawą życia, jest smakiem do obiadu i relaksem do kąpieli i potrafi podnosić na duchu. Lampka wina ma magiczną moc a historia tego "płynu" jest chyba... jeszcze bardziej magiczna. ITALIA W KIELISZKU WINA - PRZEWODNIK NIEOCZYWISTY pióra Marca Millon'a, to prawdziwa skarbnica wiedzy o napoju, który ukochali bogowie.
Millon jest ekspertem w tej dziedzinie i to widać. Widać także serce, zapał i ogromne zaangażowanie - to nie tylko fachowiec i znawca, ale także pasjonat. Muszę jednak zaznaczyć, że choć WINO gra tu pierwsze skrzypce, to czasem jest pretekstem do pokazania historii ludzi, kultury, obyczajów i wierzeń. Mamy tu do czynienia z bogatą opowieścią, soczystą i idącą do głowy.
Nie czyta się jednak tej pozycji lekko i szybko. To raczej ten rodzaj książki, którą bardziej się podczytuje niż pochłania. Jest to rzecz pełna ciekawostek, ale tworzy piękną i spójną całość. Mamy tu gromadę niezwykłych bohaterów, takich jak Napoleon, Dante, Odyseusz... Sięgamy także do Biblii, czasem nawet schodzimy do piekła, ale i niebo wino nam potrafi przybliżyć. W niezwykłym stylu Millon prowadzi nas przez winnice, rozmaite ich tradycje, jak i pokazuje historie arcyciekawe, o których się niewiele mówi, jak kobieta malarz w latach tak niemodnych dla kobieta i tak w konsekwencji trudnych (a w tle wino, wino, wino, bo wina, wina, wina dajcie).
Podsumowując muszę napisać, że jest to w dużej mierze książka po prostu historyczna. Wino jest głównym bohaterem, ale oddaje głos - wcale nie drżący i bełkoczący - ludziom, którzy postanowili wino uczynić częścią kultury, sztuki, tradycji i wznieść to rzemiosło na wyżyny doskonałości. Zdecydowanie ciekawa pozycja, szczególnie polecam każdemu, kogo interesuje i historia i wino (lampkę do lektury można wychylić).

z tego WINA jest włóczykij
seria ze smakiem
bo.wiem
Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
egzemplarz recenzencki

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unfortunately a taste for clichés spoils this otherwise learned and fascinating history of wine and the events, culture, and evolution surrounding it. There are so many great stories in this compendium about, around, and because of wine. My personal favorite: the origin of the Est Est Est wine. And there are many, many others.

[Epilot42 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rather lovely overview of thousands of years of history and culture through a series of vignettes. A more serious wine enthusiast would likely arrive more enjoyment from this book than I did as someone with only a casual interest in wine