Oxford Companion sees major update

A fourth edition of The Oxford Companion to Wine, by Jancis Robinson MW and Julia Harding MW, is due for release in September featuring significant revisions.

Over 60% of the 912-page reference book’s content is either entirely new or revised since the 2006 edition to incorporate latest research, updated figures and changes to the world wine map.

Of the 187 specialist contributors, who include viticulturalist Dr Richard Smart, oenologist Denis Dubourdieu and Chinese consultant Li Demei, 50 are new, expanding the fields of expertise behind almost 4,000 entries.

Among the new entries are urban wineries, a growing phenomenon from San Francisco to London and Hong Kong; and social media, an entry which analyses the rise, nature and impact of this rapidly evolving communication tool.

Alongside full listings of all major wine appellations, the book tracks developments in emerging wine producing countries such as England, China, Turkey and Armenia.

The text is interspersed with 90 colour photographs, maps and illustrations, further illuminating elements such as the increasingly widespread concrete eggs, particularly dramatic regions like the Douro and key techniques such as vine grafting.

Available from 17 September, The Oxford Companion to Wine is published by Oxford University Press and has an RRP of £40.