• Ever felt patronised by a waiter because of your wine choice?
• Been on the sharp end of comments about your taste in wine: “Pink wine, really?”
• Had your pronunciation of wine terms corrected?
• Confused about whether it’s OK to drink red wine with pasta?
• Had that uncomfortable feeling you’ve been conned into paying too much for a bottle of wine in a restaurant?
If you answer yes to any of these questions, then you need to read this book. Cathy Marston takes you on a wine appreciation journey from easy drinking sweets, through the popular sauvignon blancs (sew-vin-yon blonks), bubblies, dessert wines and on to the fuller reds, with the sole aim of giving you confidence in your wine choices. The confidence to enjoy drinking wine; to see it as a pleasure, not a potential source of embarrassment; and above all, to help you become confidently curious about trying something new. Because the real secret of wine success is that the more you drink, the more you know. Admittedly, the less you probably remember, but hey – you can’t have everything.

Cathy Marston has been involved in the wine industry in the United Kingdom and South Africa for 20 years and holds a Diploma from the internationally-recognised Wine & Spirit Education Trust. She teaches winemakers, sommeliers and scores of enthusiastic drinkers about their favourite tipple, is a Platter’s Wine Guide Taster, and a contributor to many South African and international publications.