Corks and Forks: Thirty Years of Wine and Food »

Some may remember Robert Finigan's private wine newsletter, published from 1972 to 1990. Others will know him as the author of the esteemed Robert Finigan's Essentials of Wine. As a critic-at-large, Finigan has dined in the best restaurants and tasted in the finest cellars of the world, and in Corks and Forks he jovially recounts his experiences and the celebrity chefs and winemakers he met along the way.

The events Finigan took part in are now legendary. For the famous Paris Tasting of 1976, Finigan recommended many California Cabernets and Chardonnays that shockingly outpointed their French counterparts. With nine of the world's most distinguished wine tasting professionals, he conducted the re-evaluation of the 1855 Bordeaux classification — the first in 140 years. He has stepped into the private kitchens of Julia Child, M.F.K. Fisher, James Beard, Jeremiah Tower, Michel Guerard, and Jean Troisgros, and sipped wine with Robert Mondavi, Ernest Gallo, and Kermit Lynch — to name just a few of the luminaries profiled in this delightful collection.

As much a chronicle of the developments in food and wine as it is a memoir of the man who witnessed them, Corks and Forks is sure to whet anyone's palate.

Library Journal

The title of this book could just as well have been People, Places and Wines I've Known. Finigan, a well-known wine critic from San Francisco, has supped at the tables of none less than Julia Child, Ernest Gallo, and Christian Moueix and here includes many renowned figures in wine and food from the past 30 years. His folksy writing style allows the reader to smell the smells and experience the terroir while being taken behind the walls of some of the most prestigious chateaux, wineries, and kitchens in the world. Finigan writes of well-known events, such as Robert Mondavi's split from the Charles Krug winery in the 1960s and the 1976 tasting in Paris, which catapulted California wines to world recognition, but all his vignettes have a personal note. In the end, Finigan's stories of European and American wining and dining can stimulate hunger for good wine and food. This memoir will be especially enjoyed by those who have appreciated Finigan's other writings, including Which Wine: At-a-Glance Listings of the Three Best Wines for Every Menu, Every Occasion, Every Budget. Highly recommended, particularly on the West Coast. Ann Weber, Bellarmine Coll. Preparatory Lib., San Jose, CA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.