Max Skinner, a finance expert in London, inherits a château and vineyard in Provence from his uncle. His initial plan is to sell the property for a quick profit, but he is gradually seduced by the leisurely pace of Provençal life.
As he immerses himself in the traditions of the cellar and the rhythms of the vineyard, Max discovers that the value of a legacy can’t be measured in money. Mayle’s novel is a sensory celebration of wine as the heart of a life rich with good food, warm company, and simple pleasures.
To pass the notoriously difficult Master of Wine exam, sommelier Kate Elliott returns to her ancestral vineyard in Burgundy, a place she’s avoided for years. While clearing out the cellar, she uncovers a hidden diary from World War II, revealing a story of collaboration, resistance, and long-buried family secrets.
The novel masterfully intertwines the intricate process of winemaking with historical drama, showing how the terroir of a vineyard holds not just the character of its wine, but the memories of its people.
In 19th-century Burgundy, a young peasant winemaker named Sobran Jodeau makes an annual appointment with an angel, Xas. Each summer night, they meet to discuss life, love, and God, and each year, Sobran’s wine becomes more extraordinary. In this luminous and poignant novel, wine is an alchemy of the earthly and the divine.
Each vintage serves as a chronicle of Sobran’s life, reflecting his joys, sorrows, and mortal questions, making winemaking an act of both faith and art.
Set in the Champagne region of France during World War II, this novel follows two women connected to the Maison Chauveau vineyard. As the German occupation tightens its grip, the chalk cellars that once aged champagne become sanctuaries for resistance fighters and hiding places for Jewish refugees.
Harmel reveals how the art of winemaking—and the courage of those who practiced it—became a defiant symbol of French culture and a tool for survival against a brutal regime.
When a car crash kills her winemaker father, Lucie Montgomery reluctantly inherits the family’s struggling vineyard in Virginia. Her return home uncorks more than just family tension; she stumbles into a murder mystery with roots that run as deep as the oldest vines.
Crosby uses the unique setting of the Virginia wine country to frame a compelling mystery where the science of viticulture and the art of tasting become crucial tools for unearthing the truth.
A down-on-his-luck food journalist discovers a bottle of 1943 Gevrey-Chambertin with a mysterious past in a dusty Illinois cellar. His quest to uncover the wine's origin takes him on an unexpected journey into history, revealing a story of love and sacrifice from the vineyards of wartime France.
Baker skillfully demonstrates how a single bottle of wine can serve as a time capsule, its taste and character telling a story that words alone cannot.
This darkly comedic novel follows Miles, a neurotic, unpublished novelist, and his hedonistic friend Jack on a week-long road trip through California’s Santa Ynez Valley wine country.
Miles’s passionate odes to Pinot Noir and vitriolic takedowns of Merlot provide a hilarious and poignant backdrop for a journey of mid-life crisis, failed romance, and self-discovery.
Pickett brilliantly uses wine not just as a beverage, but as a lens through which the characters analyze their own lives, full of complex notes, bitter finishes, and fleeting moments of perfection.
In the Pacific Northwest, Brunella Cartolano, the daughter of an iconic Italian winemaker, is drawn back to her family’s vineyard after a long absence. She confronts the complicated legacy of her brilliant but difficult father and the secrets the land holds.
Egan paints a vivid portrait of Washington State’s burgeoning wine industry, exploring how the cultivation of grapes is deeply tied to family identity, heartbreak, and the search for one's own place in the world.
A week before her wedding, Georgia Ford discovers a shocking secret about her fiancé and flees to her family’s Sonoma vineyard. She arrives to find her own family in turmoil, with her parents planning to sell the winery that has been their legacy for generations.
The novel uses the intricate art of winemaking—and the nearly infinite variables that go into a single bottle—as a powerful metaphor for the complex, sometimes messy, nature of love and family.
In this historical saga, Sara Thibault flees tragedy in 19th-century Champagne and travels to Napa Valley, California, with dreams of reclaiming her family’s winemaking legacy. Facing prejudice and sabotage, she must prove her knowledge of the Old World techniques while adapting to the New.
Harnisch tells a compelling immigrant story, portraying the grit and passion required to build a dynasty from the soil up, blending historical detail with the timeless art of crafting fine wine.
Blending fantasy with French folklore, this novel introduces Elena Boureanu, a vine witch who has just broken free from a curse. She returns to her beloved vineyard to find it in decline and a handsome stranger claiming ownership.
Elena must use her unique form of magic—coaxing the best flavors from the grapes with enchantments and charms—to save her vines and uncover a dark conspiracy. Wine is presented as a literal form of alchemy, influenced by magic as much as by terroir.
This sweeping historical epic follows Mauro Larrea, a man who loses his fortune in 19th-century Mexico and travels to Spain to collect a debt, only to find himself the unexpected owner of a rundown vineyard.
His journey to revive the winery takes him from the sun-scorched fields of Jerez to the drawing rooms of Havana, weaving a tale of ambition, romance, and reinvention. Dueñas shows how wine serves as a universal language, connecting disparate cultures and shaping human destiny across continents.
Forced to flee his native Spain in the 19th century, Josep Alvarez finds refuge in France and discovers his life's calling as a winemaker. Amid political turmoil and personal loss, he dedicates himself to the craft with a methodical, scientific passion, seeking to create a perfect vintage.
Gordon provides a richly detailed account of the labor and innovation involved in viticulture, capturing the complex artistry required to transform grapes into a masterpiece.
When a priceless collection of Bordeaux is stolen from a Los Angeles mansion, former corporate lawyer and wine aficionado Sam Levitt is hired to track it down. His investigation becomes a cat-and-mouse chase that leads him from California to the sun-drenched vineyards of Bordeaux and the back alleys of Marseille.
With his trademark wit and charm, Mayle creates a delightful mystery where a sophisticated palate is the detective's sharpest tool.
Mackenzie Dienes has dedicated her life to her husband’s family’s prestigious winery, becoming a talented winemaker in her own right. When her marriage ends, she is forced to choose between staying in the only home she’s known or leaving to start her own label and forge a new identity.
Mallery explores the emotional crossroads of a woman remaking her life, where the rhythm of the harvest and the business of wine are intimately entwined with personal passion and professional reinvention.