Contemporary Wine Studies: Dancing with Bacchus

This innovative book offers a critical study of wine from social and cultural perspectives. The field of wine studies spans the spectrum of cultural and technical issues concerning the place of wine in society from viticulture, vinification, labelling, regulation, marketing, purchasing, storage and its final consumption. It combines social history and contemporary questions including the notion of terroir, the nature of protected wine designations, the pricing of wine and the different motivations for buying and consuming wine. It considers wine as a beverage, as an aesthetic exercise and as a marker of status, as well as health implications and legal controls.

The title offers a timely contribution into the significance of wine and the role of knowledge, both of which have conceptual and managerial implications in terms of marketing, promotion, consumption and distribution. By offering a holistic and innovative understanding of wine and its consumption, it is a must-read for students and scholars in the fields of wine and social science.