This is a superb first hand account of the event that shook the wine world and turned it upside down; California wines came out on top and the wine world has never been the same since. This book is much more than a story about the event, it is a mini-history of California wine making, from the growth of small vineyards with limited production into the multi-billion dollar global business that it has become. With the California wines winning the tasting by getting the higher marks, California was thrust into the forfront surpassing the once highly regarded French wines. This competition changed everything as the California wine business began it's boom that continues to grow. As I said, it is more than a story of the competition, it is a story about the people behind the wine industry, the people who take the time to achieve world class wine, the people driven by devotion to producing the best. The book goes back in time to examine the early wine makers influence on that day in Paris. This is a great story with excellent mini-biographies, especially if you are a wine enthusiast. Recommended reading for anyone interested in the California wine industry.

Taber, a writer for Time Magazine when he observed the competition in 1976, pulls the story threads together in a mesmerizing tale of personalities, chardonnays and cabernets

Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized Wine

Ordered this book after seeing the movie "Bottle Shock" this is so much more interesting. The movie was cute but a bit stupid ... The book is great with lots of real history and technical info. on wine that I find facinating.

I bought this book thinking is was all about the 1976 Tasting in Paris but it turns out that this book is really the history of California Winemaking and all of the characters that have put California Wines where they are today. For the lover of California wines, this is a must read. Once you start reading, you can't put it down.

Most wine books are for reference, being about a region or a producer, or a collection of tasting notes. This book tells a story, and it's the best such wine book I've ever read. Campbell Mattison's "Wine Hunter" is also a good book but "Judgment of Paris" is less sentimental, and much broader in scope.

I already knew about the 1976 tasting and had recently read the Decanter coverage of the rematch 20 years later. In spite of this I still found the book interesting.

I seldom drink Californian wine, little of the good stuff makes its way outside of the USA and it is usually far overpriced. But still I found the book interesting.

It's more than a book about the 1976 tasting and how it came about and what happened. It tells the story of the creation of many of the Californian vineyards, winemakers, and specific wines that ended up in the tasting. But the book is more than this. George Taber is a former Time staff writer (who was living in France in 1976 and was the only journalist at the tasting) and his global perspective shows. He covers the implications of the tasting for California and for all of the New World, and for France too.

So I recommend this book not only to those interesting in fine wine but also to wine marketers.

Thankfully the book is absolutely not a rah rah we beat the French jingoistic celebration. Taber correctly points out that the facts that show that it's a stretch of the data to say that the Californian wines beat the French ones (especially amongst the Cabernets), the more correct summary is that it showed they were very competitive. Which is quite amazing given the youth of the vines, winemakers and general US wine industry. I hadn't realised that many of the wines were from such new operations.

Today it seems less of a story that very expensive Napa wines are competitive with very expensive French ones, but then there was a price difference and a huge perceptual one.

I was intrigued to read that even back in 1976 many of the winemakers of the `Judgment of Paris' wines were deliberately making wines in a different style to their neighbours. They were seeking elegance and balance, low alcohol wines, that were food friendly. They were quality obsessed and many of them were Francophiles when it came to their taste in wine. Of course, this is partly why the english Steven Spurrier and Patricia Gallagher chose them for the tasting.

I do wonder if these winemakers are still making wines along these lines, or whether they have bowed to the pressure from the Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate (which must be much stronger pressure on US wines that depend on US drinkers than on French winemakers) and upped their alcohol levels and sweetness ?

The story of people in the American wine industry and the wines themselves gaining international respect is documented here. This is a story that details the intersting people in the wine industry and literally the fruits of their labors. Wine is a a result of a combination of a crop that survives to harvest despite the threats of frosts , droughts and all the extremes the seasons can throw at the grower. Then the grapes are at the mercy of a vinter combining his knowledge of chemistry with experience and taste to provide us with a wonderful bottled elixer. Last year the best wine at an internation tasting was from SchillingBridge Winery in Nebraska, proving that this story of shocking the world of wine can be repeated!

Author George Taber is not a wine grower, producer, bottler, seller, or apologist. His connection to the main story in this book, the build up to a classic tasting competition in France of California wines against French wines, was that he was the only journalist to show up for the wine tasting. He wrote for Time Magazine, and Taber said he'd "...try to get there, without promising anything" (p. 163).

Ah, Malcolm Gladwell's tipping point was about to occur.

As it turned out, the California wines, both Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, came in first in blind tasting with some very well known French wine judges. It was shocking.... to the judges, the French government, and to the California wineries. They were THAT good?

This is the story of that tasting competition, the wineries involved, the wine makers, and the grape growers. Taber discusses the history of these wines, the history of wine growing regions, and the future of wines. Great wines can be grown outside of France? The cat was out of the bag. New Zealand, Chile, Australia... no longer does France spring to the tip of the tongue when discussing the very best wines.

In The Judgment of Paris, Taber stretches the narrative, so it needed to be more than entertaining... it needed to be educational. Luckily, this book was both.

I recommend it to the budding wine connoisseur! Read this book before visiting either Napa-Sonoma Counties, or France. Better yet, read it before your next visit to your local wine shop.

After 30 years of tasting wines in the Napa Valley, I finally found a book that puts all the pieces together. George M. Taber recounts the famous 1976 Paris Tasting in intricate detail...and that may be the smaller story here. In a larger sense, Taber "connects the dots" that are the owners, vineyard farmers, and wine makers who crafted the wine history of this beautiful valley. Sit back with a glass of your favorite wine and savor the passion and persistence that revolutionized the wine industry of California and the world. Cheers!

Mr. Tauber not only demystifies the world of wine to someone who knows little about it, but relates the wonderful story of devotion and hard work that goes into producing a top wine. I do believe that wine tastes better since reading this book.

Mr. Tauber not only demystifies the world of wine to someone who knows little about it, but relates the wonderful story of devotion and hard work that goes into producing a top wine. I do believe that wine tastes better since reading this book.

I love California wines. As a Californian I am very proud of my home states history and heritage as the world's premier producer of fine wines. However, it has not always been so. Until quite recently, California wines were not reveared in such an august way. What happened? How did this change in world opinion occur? I have been curious about this mysterious evolution in Californaia wines for quite some time and after a friend suggested Judgment of Paris to me I began to hope that it would be all I had wished for. I was not disappointed. Obviously, I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys history and loves premium wine, especially wines produced in California.

The Judgment of Paris is such a tremendous book on many levels. It is full of tender and engaging stories about real people who, against all odds, helped establish California wines amongst the best in the world, culminating with their personal involvement in the now famous 1976 Paris wine tasting competition: The seminal event that turned the world of wine on it's collective head.

This book is also a fabulous review of premier wine making history, not only in California, but worldwide. If your knowledge of wines and wine making is limited or non-existent, you will feel like quite the connoisseur by the time you are finished reading. This is a really fun and informative book. Very well researched and extremely well written.

Cheers! to George Tabor for crafting such a wonderful `book-quet'. ;-)

This was a very good book. It filled in many of the blanks. However, Taber's proofreader should have been more careful... he/she would have caught Taber's mistake in referring to Jancis Robinson as a he instead of a she. It just goes to show that a non-wine person wrote (and proofed) the book!

Everyone knows this event was controversial. It is the tasting that allowed premium U.S. wineries to begin the meteoric rise in quality (and price) that we see today. Arguably, it is what launched the globe's infatuation with the "New World Style".

This is the story as told by the most reliable source available. Author George Tabor was the only journalist to attend this epochal event in 1976. He was a young journalist in Paris at a time when ex-pats gathered at the events held by British Wine Merchant, Steven Spurrier.

When Spurrier organized a daytime competition between the wines of California and France, no journalists answered the invitation. It is lucky for the U.S. wine industry that Tabor decided to attend at the last minute, or the results of this tasting would surely have been re-written by the shocked and embarrassed judges. A great read for anyone who loves wine and/or history.

This is the story of the wine tasting event that put California and Napa Valley on the elite winemaking map. For those who don't know, in 1976 a British wine merchant stage a blind tasting of elite French wines against California wines. The judges were all French and expected to judge in favor of the French wines. But, the California wines scored much better and suddenly French dominance of winemaking was being questioned everywhere. George Taber was the only journalist at the event and wrote a small article for Time magazine. This is his story of what happened that day and the impact it had on the world wine industry.

I was fascinated by this book not because of its description of the events, but because of Taber's description of the people and the culture of Napa Valley in the 60's and 70's that led to premium winemaking in California. I really enjoyed they way he made the personalities of the key winemakers of the time real to the reader. It would have been easy to let this story be focused on the industry and economics, but Taber tells the story of the dreamers and inventors that made it happen.

My only complaint about the book would be that Taber doesn't know when to stop. The last chapters deal with the wine industry in other countries, such as Australia, South Africa, Chile, and New Zealand. I felt this got off topic and was unnecessary and dry. Still this is a minor complaint. You can always stop reading when you get to this point and you will have had a great time.

Recommended book for anyone with an interest in wine. Also, if you are planning a trip to Napa, the wineries in the competition are a great visit.

Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized Wine

This is not only an account of the historic blind tasting of new and old world wines. The author explores the background of the winemakers and personalities who established the Californian vineyards and promoted the technologies which enable us, the customers, to enjoy efficiently produced, quality guaranteed wines. Well researched and full of personal detail, George Taber has woven together a tapestry that illustrates the history and development of the Californian wine industry.

Another MUST READ for the wine buff / oenophile would be "NOBLE ROT - a Bordeaux Wine Revolution" by William Echikson Publ: W W Norton & Co New York / London. AMAZON should sell both these books as a pair.

Your next glass of Claret or Zinfandel will never taste the same.