Page 30 - Exploring Taste Magazine N.2

EXPLORING TASTE—SANTA MARGHERITA GRUPPO VINICOLO

“With my brilliant colleague Julia Harding MW and grape geneticist Dr José Vouillamoz,
I gathered together masses of information on all the grape varieties we could find that were producing
wine commercially in 2011. We found 1,368 but I’m sure we would find almost 1,500 today.”

Mrs. Robinson, you have a background in Maths and Philoso- editing) for JancisRobinson.com. This completely independent
phy studies at Oxford. Do you think that your education might website, launched in 2000 and with members in 100 countries,
have af ected your approach to the wine world? is what gives me greatest pleasure because it is so immediate (I
Logic was the great bridge between the two subjects and I think can publish something as soon as I have written it), because I have
having a logical mind, and great respect for science, certainly direct contact with the wine lovers who visit it, and because I am
helped me when I came to produce The Oxford Companion to Wine in complete control!
for the f rst time between 1988 and 1994, when the f rst edition
came out. Following the convention of Oxford Companions, I had We’ve already talked about The Oxford Companion to
to divide the complex world of wine into a succession of alphabeti- Wine, one of the greatest best-sellers in the history of the wine
cally listed articles. It helped me master the art of cross-referencing publishing industry. The Washington Post def ned it as “the
too. The fourth edition was published in 2015 and I believe this greatest wine book ever published” and among the numerous
unique book, with its almost 4,000 articles, has been widely ap- recognitions that the book has received, we want to mention
preciated by wine students all over the world. two James Beard Awards, one in 1995 and one in 2016, the
same year in which you also have received the OIV Grand
When did you start your career in the wine business and who Prix. Can you take us through the features of the book?
were your f rst teachers? The Oxford Companion to Wine presents almost 4,000 entries on
December 1, 1975, virtually pre-history as far as modern wine is every wine-related topic imaginable: from viticulture and oenolo-
concerned. I began as assistant editor of the British wine trade gy to the history of wine, from its origins to the present day. The
magazine Wine & Spirit. To tell the truth, my only teacher there 187 esteemed contributors range from internationally renowned
was the secretary who showed me how the magazine was put to- academics to some of the most famous wine writers and wine
gether. The editor was too busy launching the Decanter magazine. specialists in the world. Now exhaustively updated, this fourth
edition incorporates the very latest international research to
In 1979 you started working as a wine correspondent for the present 300 new entries such as wine apps, authentication, Cel-
Sunday Times of London, in 1983 you were a writer and host larTracker, concrete, counterfeit wine, f lms about wine, microbial
of the Wine Programme on Channel 4, the very f rst TV show terroir, but also planting rights, plastic bottles, social media, tast-
dedicated to wine. 1984 was the year of the Master of Wine ing notes language and urban wineries. Over 60% of all entries
exam, whereas in 1990 you started working as a correspondent have been revised; and useful lists and statistics are appended,
for the Financial Times, just to mention a few of your numerous including a unique list of the world’s controlled appellations and
collaborations. What are your main activities today? their permitted grape varieties, as well as vineyard area, wine pro-
Today I write weekly for the Financial Times and daily (writing or duction and consumption by country.

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