Books about wine are usually rich with pictures which make them excellent coffee table books.

The Oxford Companion to Wine - With more than 3,000 entries on every aspect of wine from vine pests to specific grapes, this hefty tome has something for both the seasoned connoisseur and novice alike. Edited by one of today's premier wine columnists, the work covers all aspects of wine, travelling back in time to early Greece to examine wine's role in Dionysian revels, then returning to today's wine centers to explore all aspects of wine appreciation. A full third of the book is dedicated to specific wines and wine-producing regions. All those technical terms you've heard and puzzled over at tastings are clearly explained, making this the perfect reference for newcomers to the world of oenology.

Wines and Brandies of the Cape of Good Hope - This is what it says: the definitive guide. Interesting enough for the novice and technical enough for the advance student of wine. Gorgeous photos of the world's most beautiful wine country. Contains discussions with leading South African winemakers - a must read for anyone interested in South African wines. The book opens with a comprehensive look at the wine industry in South Africa. Following chapters then delve into viticultural practices, grape varieties, and cellar techniques at the Cape. The text is layered in such a way that the reader is drawn towards a series of interviews by the editor, Harry Stephan, with ten of the Cape's premier winemakers. These interviews set out to explain how soil and climate have affected the making of fine wine, and the winemakers provide a fascinating study of their art.

Hugh Johnson's Pocket Encyclopedia of Wine, 2000 - Indispensible for serious (or non-serious) wine buyers. Annually updated country-by-country ratings of many vintages of over 6000 wines. Maps, label guides, vintage charts, history, production, wine appreciation. Pocket-sized. Hugh Johnson is the Grand Old Man of wine writing. For nearly a quarter of a century--during which there's been an exponential growth in the number of Napa wineries--Johnson has been distilling the entire world of wine into Hugh Johnson's Pocket Encyclopedia of Wine 2000. This is the 23rd edition of this lively, biased, Eurocentric, and highly informative compact reference.

Wine Atlas of Australia & New Zealand. James Halliday. 1998. 416pp. Hardcover. This updated edition contains the finest and most complete description of Australia's and New Zealand's wines, wineries, and wine industry. Beautiful photos and maps show Australia's system of Zones and Regions.

Windows on the World Complete Wine Course 2000. Kevin Zraly. Hardcover. Long-time wine-educator, Kevin Zraly, has honed this wine course over the years for those becoming interested in fine wines, restaurateurs and even for those more experienced wine buyers. This classic has been completely rewritten for this edition.

The Winemasters of Bordeaux: The Inside Story of the World's Greatest Wines. Nicholas Faith. 1999. 352pp. Hardcover. Mr. Faith, a long-time and savvy wine and spirits writer, recounts the intertwined history of the, mostly British and Irish, Bordeaux wine merchants and the, mostly French, Bordeaux chateaux owners. He tells this intriguing tale with much detail and understanding of social mechanisms from the rise of both groups to the present day. Updated from his 1978 edition.

Wine for Dummies. Ed McCarthy & Mary Ewing Mulligan, M.W. 1995. 400 pp. Pbk. Packed with basic information on wine and co-authored by one of America's first Masters of Wine.

Daniel Johnnes's Top 200 Wines: An Expert's Guide to Maximum Enjoyment for your Dollar. Daniel Johnnes with Michael Stephenson. 1996. 382pp. Pbk. By the winebuyer for several top New York restaurants this useful book approaches wine from a "flavor per dollar" perspective. It contains a well-organized intro to wine, glossaries, a discussion of each wine region, and good values within each region.

Larousse Encyclopedia of Wine. C. Foulkes, C. Segrave, eds. 1994. 608pp. Hardcover. For the novice and expert alike. Gives ample information on how to read wine labels, what to look for in wines from certain regions and which are the best. And, for the expert, the details of soil types, climates and the number of cases produced by each region's producers. Lots of pictures and maps make the book fun to browse through.

Australian Wine: A Pictorial Guide. Thomas Hardy & Milan Roden. 1996. 352pp. Hardcover. History, principal wines, and touring information for 300 wineries; plus hundreds of color photos and great maps. A worthy replacement for Wine Atlas of Australia and New Zealand, now out of print.

The Country Wines of Burgundy & Beaujolais. Patrick Delaforce. 1989. 192pp. Pbk. Member of an old British wine family and long-time resident of France, the author recounts the history of wine in Burgundy, the structure of the Burgundy wine trade, and Burgundy wine types; village-by-village description of producers, co-ops, merchants.

Loire Valley & Its Wines. James Seely. 1990. 168pp. Hardcover. The author, British wine merchant as well as wine writer, discusses Loire regions, grape types and treatment for each, individual wines from hundreds of chateaux, and restaurants and inns. B&w and color photos.

Tasting Pleasure. Jancis Robinson. 1997. 342pp. Hardcover. An autobiographical ramble with Jancis through her first 40+ years. With her usual breezy and unpretentious style Ms. Robinson recounts many incredible wine tastings, both public and private. The narrative is notable for the close-up sketches of wine personalities and for the well-placed author's insights into how wine and the wine world have changed over the last 20 years. Very informative.

Parker's Wine Buyer's Guide, 5th ed., by Robert M. Parker, Jr. 1999 (Softcover). The long-awaited new edition of Parker's guide presents tasting notes and ratings for 8,000 wines from all over the world, plus a rough price guide for each. Bordeaux wines are the most up-to-date with notes on the 1995-8 vintages for many producers. Parker also includes a lot of general information on regions, grape types, and drinking practices. A must for the serious wine buyer.