It was my curiosity about the meaning of the book’s title, Stikky Wine, that led me to accept a copy for review. What did the title mean? Was it a book about sweet wines — stikky being a playful spelling of stickies, the Australian slang for sweet dessert wines? I doubted that. So what is Stikky Wine all about exactly? Only one way to find out — read it.
Turns out, Stikky Wine is a book written for people just beginning their wine exploration. The book provides small amounts of information at a time and uses lots of pictures and memory aids to reinforce that information. And, it reviews information with mini-tests as it goes along to reinforce learning. The book is presented in three sections, which the author asks the reader to read in order. The author also asks the reader to pause after each section to practice what they’ve learned. One of the best things about Stikky Wine is that it makes learning fun!
Stikky Wine starts out by describing the basic aromas the reader will experience in wine and how aromas differ in red and white wines. Building on fruit descriptors, Stikky Wine goes on to group aromas in six categories identified by the mnemonic WHEFFS, a play on whiffs. The descriptors in each category are limited, so the reader isn’t overwhelmed by too much detail, but can grasp the basics. As the section proceeds, three red and three white wines are described individually.
Sequence Two begins with a review of the flavors of red and white wines, and how aromas translate to flavors, before moving on to three important sensations you will experience in addition to aromas. There’s an mnemonic for that too, TAB, and an easy way to learn how to describe them. Next, the section introduces ordering wine in a restaurant, food and wine pairing and describes a couple of wine faults. Once again, the section ends with a series of mini-tests.
Sequence One and Sequence Two give the reader the basic information they need to smell, taste, describe and enjoy a glass of wine. The Epilogue begins with a series of tests reviewing the information that has been presented then further discusses ordering wine in a restaurant. Finally, Stikky Wine encourages the reader to apply what they have learned about six varietal wines to other red and white wines.
Next Steps is like an appendix; it contains information about other wines, wine terms, wine labels, wine books, apps, websites and more. The list of wine festivals is a fun inclusion and lots more information beyond the basics is included — information the reader can study at their own pace.
Stikky Wine is the opposite of stuffy, a descriptor (not unearned) sometimes applied to wine. It includes lots of information presented in an engaging way with many pictures and illustrations, pattern-based learning according to the folks at Stikky, so the information sticks. It’s a small book, just 7 inches by 5 inches, and is 256 pages long. Each section of the book is identified by color tabs for easy reference. You won’t instantly become a sommelier after spending an hour reading Stikky Wine, but you will have a good foundation of information to build upon. It’s worth the $12 price and it comes with a series of crib sheets!
Stikky Wine is available for purchase on the Stikky website along with other Stikky books. We do not receive compensation of you order from the Stikky website.
Thanks to Book Publicity Services for providing the book for review.
Cheers!
