tl;dr - This book helps you experience wine like no other book has done before. It is visually engaging, educationally satisfying, and incredibly enjoyable to flip through. It is for experienced wine connoisseurs and newbies alike. And it exceeds expectations in every way - it did for me at least!----------------------------------------------------My initial, irrational fear:When I opened the box from Amazon and picked up the book, I wanted so much, probably more than most, for this book to be unbelievably awesome. Well, before opening the book, I was suddenly convinced there would be far too much information for me to ever get through without being completely overwhelmed, or bored to tears...and the book isn't even particularly long!Remember, I said "irrational" fear.While it may be irrational, there are probably a lot of people that feel the same way, or have similar preconceived notions, about a book on wine. You might be nodding your head right now. So, I immediately resolved to flip through every page, purely out of respect for the amount of time and effort that was put into this book. To my surprise, I made it through the entire book in 15 minutes. Lies, you say. Let me clarify. I scanned every page quickly, focusing mostly on headings and illustrations. I stopped every so often to browse through the contents on a particular page.Well?? ...I was delighted, to say the least!After flipping through the book a few more times I realized there is something very difficult to do when it comes to education, especially when it involves a seemingly complex topic like wine. That is this - to present information in such a way that it is visually engaging, educationally satisfying, and enjoyable for experts and newbies alike.This book has done just that.THE GOOD:1. It's useful - I can't emphasize this enough. For me, most of the time at least, purchasing decisions are based primarily on usefulness (including birthday/wedding gifts). A few examples (I won't give away much because half the fun of opening this book is what you'll discover next!):(a) This book teaches you, simply and easily, how to smell and taste wine, which is a wonderful part of the wine experience and great information for a novice (like me!).(b) It gives glass type/shape recommendations for every type of wine imaginable in the second section of the book, and explains why in the first section of the book.(c) Everything covered in this book is explained in bite size pieces of information or illustrations. Consider the alternative - you're skimming through a wall of text searching for something specific, only to not find it at all, and promptly decide that reading about wine is boring and a waste of your time - that, my friend, is an example of what this book is not. You can flip to a page, using the index if needed, and find what you're looking for right away - that's useful.Side note: I tested this. I walked to my fridge to assess my cheese inventory. A block of Tillamook sharp cheddar, excellent. I opened the book, turned to the index, found cheese pairing under "C" (naturally), flipped to page 34 and saw that cheddar pairs excellently with full-bodied red wine. I then turned to full-bodied reds in section two and found Cabernet Sauvignon, perfect!2. It's easy to navigate - The book only has 3 main sections. Fundamentals, styles of wine, and wine regions. At first, this alarmed me, but I quickly realized this is one of the best things about how the book is structured. The index helps you find something quickly, and after flipping through the book twice, I knew generally where everything was.3. Want more? No problem! Every page in the book has a specific link to their site, winefolly.com, where you can learn even more about the topic of that page. I've never seen that before, ever. Major bonus points here.THE BAD:If you enjoy and prefer reading walls of text, this book probably won't be your favorite. It may, however, be the most visually enjoyable way to learn about wine. Which will, at the very least, present wine to you in an entirely new light. It won't even seem like learning, it will just be...fun!THE BEAUTIFUL:It is beautiful, truly (Madeline, you're a genius). There are those books that are so visually pleasing, you find yourself browsing through them regularly, not looking for anything in particular, simply enjoying the fun illustrations and bits of information. This is one of those books.Final thoughts:My expectations were exceeded in every way. Be warned, this book will suck you in every time you open it. I know that 10 years from now, I will be just as delighted as I am now to peruse the contents of this visually engaging and smartly composed book about wine."Sweet berry wine!" - Dr. Steve Brule