Book Giveaway: From One Expert to Another

Wine writer Jancis Robinson
is known for big books, such as the 912-page Oxford Companion to
Wine (currently in its
fourth, much-revised edition) and the 1280-page Wine Grapes (which won every major wine book award
in the year of its publication). Perhaps that�s one reason her newest title,
which just came out in the US, is so compelling: how much of her 40 years of
wine experience could she possibly cram into just 111 pages, between two tiny
5� x 7� covers?

As you might have
expected...quite a lot.

To celebrate the publication
of this new hardcover version (the first was a paperback published in the UK in
February), Jancis� New York publisher Abrams, has given me five copies of The 24-Hour Wine Expert to give away. With corkscrews! Yep, to
enter simply leave a comment below. Five lucky readers will get a copy of the
book and a corkscrew to match.

Jancis is one of the
most-respected, most-prolific wine writers working today. And boy, does she
work. Based in London, she travels roughly one third of the year:
 tasting, rating and writing for a multitude of publications including her
website JancisRobinson.com, which is updated
daily and has subscribers in more than 100 countries. Jancis writes a weekly
column for the Financial Times while Decanter called her �the most respected wine
critic and journalist in the world.� She even provides advice to the wine
cellar of Queen Elizabeth II. (I love the idea of the Queen ringing up...Jan?
Sorry to be a bother, but the King of Spain is on his way and I have no idea
what to pour!)

When I caught up with her
last week, Jancis was up in Ch�teauneuf-du-Pape, where she told me she had just
finished tasting some 175 vintages.

�This week?� I asked.

�Today,� she replied.

To learn more about her
background and accomplishments, read her shortish Wikipedia bio here or the full, amazing one here...but
be forewarned: whatever you�ve done with your life, you�ll feel like a total
slacker if you do!

This new book, Jancis says,
is for people who like wine but don�t feel quite sure of themselves in a wine
shop buying for a dinner party...or in a restaurant, wine list in hand. �It�s for people who
want a shortcut to the essentials,� she says. 



And so, after taking us quickly but comprehensively through the wine regions of
the world and their grapes, she sets out to painlessly help us make the most of
what she calls �the most delicious, stimulating, varied and infuriatingly
complicated drink in the world.�

Topics
include how to select the right
bottle at retail; understanding the properties of color and aroma; what the
different shapes of bottles and their labels tell you; what terms like �full
body,� �supple,� �round� and �nose� really mean; what wines pair well with
foods such as pizza, sushi or Thai; what the terms organic, biodynamic and
natural mean in the wine world; how to chill and warm wines; and much more.

And what
about that perennial question about how price correlates to quality? As in, how
much do we really need to
spend to get a good bottle?

�There is no
direct correlation between price and quality in wine,� she writes, before
giving us a handy list of underpriced, overpriced and splurge-worthy labels.
�Many wines are overpriced because of inflated market demand, ambition, greed,
or just because a marketing person sees the need for an �icon wine� in the
range. The difference in quality between wines at the top and bottom ends of
the price scale is narrower than it has ever been, while the difference in
price has never been greater.

�Packaging,
shopping, marketing, and, in many countries, local taxes and duties tend to
account for by far the majority of the price of very cheap wines,� Jancis
continues, �with the cost of the liquid itself representing a tiny fraction of
what you are paying. Ambition is responsible for much of the selling price of
more expensive wines. For this reason, the best value is generally in the range
of $10 to $30 a bottle. Here, you more or less get what you pay for.�

Sound good? Then leave a
comment below (click where it says comments) for your chance to win a copy...and a corkscrew! If you have
a wine anecdote to share, even better! And please be sure to include your email
address or we can�t reach you if you win...best is to put it right in the body
of your comment text. 



If you want to buy the book,
it�s in all the major retailers or order it on Amazon here.

Provence for Special-Need Kids and Adults

I recently came across a company called Go Provence, offering
"supported holidays" for kids and adults with learning disabilities,
autism and other challenges. The goal is to provide stimulating, fun and safe
vacations for all ages in the South of France...and I think what they're doing is fantastic.

Go Provence was founded in 2010 by British expats Ian Callen, Anna
Callen and Neil Manser. While they cater primarily to clients from the UK,
they've had guests come from elsewhere in Europe and from the US as well.

Based near the Gorges du Verdon, in a spectacularly beautiful part
of Provence, Go Provence offers all-inclusive themed holidays that mix outdoor
adventure, excursions and relaxation. 

For those who need it, they can even accompany clients to and from
the UK.  There are also off-season trips, such as a learn-to-ski trip in
Andorra in January, 2017 (more on that below) and a trip to Italy in
October, 2017.

Dates for all 2017 trips have just been posted on the company�s
website here.  Themes include
Wildlife Photography, Trekking, Wolf Tracking, World Cuisine, Great
Adventure, Music Week,  Art Holiday, Discover Provence, Water Holiday, Great Adventure and School of Rock.



There will be also be a special week in Provence designed for
people who use wheelchairs. How great is that?

Go Provence also creates customized, private holidays for four
people or more. 

For family members and full-time carers who choose to stay in
Provence at the same time, Go Provence will happily arrange accommodation
nearby, in the village of Esparron de Verdon. 

Ian and Anna Callen have lived in Provence, near the Gorges du
Verdon, since 2007; they have three children. Ian worked previously at The
Olive Tree International School in nearby Quinson, teaching photography,
horticulture, conservation, biology and astronomy to children with challenging
behaviour. There�s a very nice story about him here.

Anna also has a background in teaching children, particularly
those with dyslexia and challenging behavior. She formerly worked for the local
Tourist Office and knows the area exceedingly well.

Neil
has lived in France for 20 years after having worked with special-need kids in
the UK and with special-need adults in Malaysia. His training is in social
care, epilepsy and Midazolam, safeguarding vulnerable adults and the Mental
Capacity Act. Neil is the Go Provence chef and lives near St. Tropez.

All the Go Provence staff are fully bi-lingual (French and
English) and experienced and first-aid trained to a Red Cross standard. The
facility is registered with a local doctor and nurse and has access to
nearby hospitals.

For those interested in an active winter getaway, Go Provence is
offering a five-night learn-to-ski holiday in Catalan-speaking Andorra in
January. Guests will fly from Gatwick to Toulouse, France on January 8, then
travel by mini bus to the beautiful Pyrenean village of Arinsal, set 1467m
above sea level. They�ll stay (full board) at the Hotel Solana for five nights,
enjoying five days at ski school with fully qualified instructors, ski
gear and boarding passes included. Support will be on hand 24/7; the trip is
�2090 per person.  The registration deadline for the ski trip is October
24 and it only happens if there are five guests or more. More on the ski trip
is here.

Heading into their seventh year with Go Provence, Ian says the
team feels enormous pride in what they�ve helped their clients accomplish.

�We love seeing them achieve their goals,� he tells me. �We had a
client Ed, a great photographer who had won awards for his work but couldn't
find anyone to give him an exhibition. We were able to arrange a show for him
in a local restaurant. We had an opening evening, the local press turned up and
Ed sold five photos.  As you can imagine, he was a very happy man." 

Just around the time I was writing this, Ian emailed to tell me about his newest offering, a program called Travel Buddies, providing travel planning support and travel companions for a wide range of destinations. And in the months to come, Go Provence plans to add supported
backpacking holidays around Europe, a Northern Lights holiday in Sweden and
volunteer holidays in developing countries.

�We want to change the way that people with special needs
travel...and increase their opportunities to do so...to the point where access
to travel becomes standard,� Ian says. �Travel is so important to ones sense of
happiness! A friend of mine, who worked in a hospice sitting with terminally
ill people during their last days, once told me that when people looked back at
their lives and talked about their regrets, they didn�t mention money or
careers. He said that they wished they had spent more time with their family
and friends...and that they had traveled more.� 

For more info, photos, mailing list sign-up and other details,
visit the website here. Ian also writes a
blog about the Gorges du Verdon, which you can see here.

Photos: (1-8) Among the many activities offered to Go Provence clients are
kayaking, market shopping, painting, adventure sports, farm visits and photography. (9) In January 2017, the company will host a ski trip to Andorra.  (10-12) Go Provence summer holidays are based in a large country house one
kilometer from the village of Moustiers Sainte-Marie, considered among the
most beautiful in Provence.  The house was restored in the winter of
2013/14. It has a lovely garden with views over to Moustiers and the breathtaking Gorges du
Verdon.