I saw (and loved) the movie first and picked up the book almost twenty years later. The movie, and the book, have such a charm that I almost regret being a tee-totaler because the world of wine-tasting is brought out in all its glory.
Of course, it's also a bachelor story, two old friends in their 30's. One an actor and a hedonist, the other a struggling writer who is much more a hedonist than he's willing to admit. It's a road trip story. Miles and Jack, two old friends, going out for one last week of wine and chasing women before Jack ties the knot.
A part of me actually likes the movie better just because the central California setting is really brought to life and though both versions are bachelor romps, I thought the book went further than I wanted to into the head of Miles and the base motivation of Jack. I actually didn't think as much of the characters because a lot of the emotions and urges were generic and simply overdone.
I still enjoyed it quite a bit and Rex Pickett has a way with words and with describing settings. I'm not intrigued enough to read the sequels, at least not yet. To me this is a good stand-alone story, I don't care so much to read about another romp.