In Thomas Jefferson On Wine, John Hailman celebrates a founding father's talents as a wine connoisseur and provides unprecedented insight into a seldom explored facet of this great man. In both his personal and public lives, Jefferson wielded his considerable expertise and influence to change the views of his friends, fellow founding fathers, and the American public on the pleasures and refinements of wine.

An international wine judge and former wine columnist for the Washington Post, Hailman discusses the particular wines Jefferson sought, the ways in which Jefferson's tastes developed, and how Jefferson became one of the great wine connoisseurs of the early American republic. His recommendations governed the president's table before and after his tenure there. Thomas Jefferson on Wine explores the third president's fascination with scores of wines from his student days at Williamsburg to his lengthy retirement years at Monticello, using mainly Jefferson's own vivid words from hundreds of immensely readable and surprisingly modern letters on the subject.

Hailman examines Jefferson's five critical years in Paris, where he learned about fine wines at Europe's salons and dinner tables. The book uses excerpts from Jefferson's journals, as well as his letters to friends and wine merchants, whose descendants still produce the wines Jefferson enjoyed. Vivid contemporary accounts of dinners at the White House allow readers to vicariously experience the enjoyment of fine wine. The book concludes with an overview of the current restoration of the vineyards at Monticello and the new Monticello Wine Trail and its numerous world-class Virginia wineries. In Thomas Jefferson On Wine Hailman presents an absorbing and unique view of this towering historical figure.

Customer Review: History by the glass

What I was hoping for and got was a historical perspective on the man relative to the events of his time and how wine was viewed, served and distributed. In general the book is a great mix of all three although at times the inventory lists of wine in Jefferson's possession do not yield enough clues about him. Sometimes they are just lists. For those that want to try to at least purchase a little bit of history, the book is helpful in identifying French wineries that are still in existence from Jefferson's time. Some winery terms used to today are explained in the context of Jefferson's. The use of his letters to people are cool but sparse. Could have used more.

Customer Review: THOMAS JEFFERSON ON WINE

This book is super for anyone interested in wine-to know what was going on in wine in Jeffersons time-some European wines that we drink today but were surly different at that time.Well written as well

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