The Wines of Germany

by Stephen Brook

The Wines of Germany is the most detailed book in English language about German wines which I have come across so far. Naturally, Riesling enjoys a lot of attention in Stephen Brook's insightful book.

The Wines of Germany can be divided into two sections: the first gives a useful overview of Germany's wine history and explains the various styles of German wine. The different grape varieties, even the most obscure ones, are described in detail. Mr. Brook also tries to illuminate the dark chambers of the much discussed German wine law. He outlines the good intentions of winemaker associations such as the VDP and Charta who for many years have tried to fight a law which ignores the notion of terroir and instead puts ripeness levels above all as the sole criteria for the quality of a wine. But the author also points out the shortcomings of some of these attempts. The Charta movement in the Rheingau started to disintegrate from the inside because leading members had different views on how rigid a new vineyard classification should be and several members left the VDP because the minimum requirements for first growth classifications were seen as being too low. What makes this chapter such an interesting read is the fact that Mr. Brook lets the involved growers have their say, quoting them wherever it's necessary to shed light on a matter that has become utterly confusing.

The second part of the book is dedicated to Germany's different wine regions. The most important vineyards are described in detail, including its size, the characteristic and composition of the soil, its micro-climate and ownership, since most vineyards in Germany are owned by several growers. I have not seen such a detailed description of so many German vineyards in a single book before. These sections are most useful to anyone who is interested in learning more about the micro-climatic origin of a particular German wine. Mr. Brook then covers a wide range of producers for each region, pointing out their strengths and weaknesses alike.

There is a lot of information packed into this book but the numerous growers' quotations, which are seamlessly integrated into the flow of each chapter, make it a diverting read. The detailed vineyard and producer descriptions make it also a useful reference book. The two chapters about the German wine law and vineyard classification would have benefited from a better organization to help the reader through Germany's legal clutter.