The Instant Sommelier: Choosing Your Best Wine

By: Paul Wagner, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Paul Wagner

You don’t have to master the entire repertoire of grapes, techniques, ingredients, variations, and other components to truly appreciate the wine you’re drinking. Simply armed with the senses you already have, an expert guide, and a glass of your favorite, you can learn how to better enjoy the wine you’re drinking, while at the same time gaining a deeper recognition for your own tastes.

There are nearly 150,000 wines for sale in the US market alone. And there are just as many books, articles, websites, and other resources instructing you on the plethora of ways to choose, drink, and enjoy wine. So, how do you cut through the clutter and find the best wines for you? Paul Wagner, an instructor for Napa Valley College’s Viticulture and Enology department, has spent the last 25 years helping people do just that. He’s dedicated his career to what he calls, “democratizing wine appreciation.” After spending years working in wineries, leading hundreds of tastings, and having hands-on experience in every aspect of the world of wine, he shares his deep and comprehensive wine knowledge through eight down-to-earth, practical, and accessible lessons in The Instant Sommelier: Choosing Your Best Wine, which will take the intimidation factor out of choosing, drinking, and enjoying wines. From swirl to finish, he’ll introduce you to the vocabulary you need to speak intelligently about wine and to understand what each term means when it comes to finding wines you’ll love.

Whether you enjoy drinking wine, want to learn more about wine, or you’re just curious what all the fuss is about, join Professor Wagner for this short course jam-packed with everything you need to know about wine on an everyday basis. All you need is a corkscrew, a couple of wine glasses, and an open mind when it comes to the wonderful world of wine.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 The Great Courses (P)2019 The Teaching Company, LLC

Made me want to try wine again!

I’m not a big fan of wine but this gave a better sense of what to look for and how to try it. Maybe I’ll learn to enjoy wine more but if not, at least I’ll know how to serve better wine to my friends.

A very fun listen

I enjoyed a lot the voice of Paul and his style. In the end I learned there are a lot of wines and that some wine experts are not snobs.

Best out of 3

I’ve read 2 other books about wine. These lectures are the best—succinct, clear, with gems of valuable information.

Excellent overview!

This is a fun, lively overview of the world of wine. After listening to this, I feel much more knowledgeable about how to select and enjoy wine.

Well done!

Enjoyed the informative and entertaining lectures from someone so knowledgeable. Wish I could take a class in person!