I don't like the way the information is presented. It's better to just focus on several extraordinary examples so that readers can capture the essence of how to match drinks with food.

Excellent pairing advice, whether you're starting with the food or the beverage. Available as a (somewhat clunky) app.

I like the premise of the book, but the format doesn't make it easy to look something up quickly. An app based on the tables would come in handy for those times when you are just out of dinner ideas.

Some of the content is identical to their other book I read (can't recall the name and am too lazy to look it up right now) and many of the examples now feel dated. This doesn't mean it's not useful, but it does mean you have to read for overall idea and not get your mouth set for the specific wines that are talked about with such fervent longing by some of the soms.

My biggest disappointment with the book is that the subtitle specified it would include "beer, spirits, coffee, tea -- even water" and it didn't deliver on that promise. Several menus list beer and sake, but nowhere is there any real detail about the types or why X goes with Y. Coffee got maybe four paragraphs of extremely basic (and not particularly helpful or accurate) info. Tea got even less than that. There was actually more info on waters than coffee or tea, come to think of it.

There's a bit of showing off by some of the people interviewed for this book, especially in the last chapter where soms were asked to comprise a fantasy case to take to a deserted island along with food pairing for those wines. Most of them couldn't resist listing rare and exorbitantly priced wines and foods. I get it: it was supposed to be a fantasy exercise, but it really got ridiculous. The only person they talked to I'd even consider allowing on my deserted island is the som from Per Se and the French Laundry. His list read like stuff he'd actually eaten enough to be familiar with and not just a culinary wet dream. After spending several hundred pages trying to convince the reader that they should not be intimidated by a wine list or pairing food with wine, this "fantasy list" chapter was counterproductive because most of their readers will never have a chance to taste 99.9% of what was listed. Either it's no longer available, or it's cost prohibitive. Stop showing off. It's obnoxious.

In short, there's some useful into in this book, but finding it when you want/need it would be more trouble than it's worth.

This is the BEST resource ever for wine lovers! It has a two-way index: you can search on a food to figure out what wine to drink with it, or you can search on wines to figure out what food to make with it. Unbelievably helpful. My husband calls it "The Bible." We refer to it at LEAST once a week.

A handy guide to matching food and wine for every occasion, including desert islands (Tecate in cans with limes, of course!)

A must have for any food lover. No better guide to how to plan a perfect meal for 2 or 200. With this, and "the flavor bible" you simply can't go wrong.

Written by the authors of  Culinary Artistry, this is a great reference for finding appropriate wines for your favorite foods and foods for your favorite wines. The pairings are not rigid and are based on recommendations from top sommeliers as to what will best enhance certain flavors.

While I'm partial to reds, I was happy to see that Reislings, the wine of my people, are such a great all-purpose choice. The wine of my people has been vindicated and needs to be promoted more.

If you love wine and food, this is a great reference to have handy.

Perhaps the most consulted reference book in our home! LOVE THIS BOOK. I have given it as a gift so many times that Amazon thinks I am related to the author. I think the reseracher in me appreciates the organization of what is really a meta-analyis of subjective, qualitative data. But I haven't been steered wrong, yet!

This is my "go to" reference book for which wine to serve with dinner. It has a place of honor on my kitchen bookshelf.

Although I borrowed this from the library, this is a book I will definitely have to buy as a reference guide. One that will be incredibly useful. Also a great book for my chef friends and food-enthusiasts in general.

This book is infinitely helpful with successful pairings and menu writing!

Publishers Description (I am abbreviating it as it was a little long)

"The most comprehensive guide to matching food and drink ever compiled, by the James Beard Award winning author team of Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg, with practical advice from more than seventy of America’s leading pairing experts...

Exceptional in its depth and scope - with over fifteen hundred entries - What to Drink with What You Eat is based on the collective wisdom of experts at dozens of America’s best restaurants, including Alinea, Babbo, Bern’s, Blue Hill, Chanterelle, Daniel, Emeril’s, French Laundry, Frontera Grill, Inn at Little Washington, Jean Georges, Masa’s, The Modern, Per Se, Rubicon, Tru, and Valentino.

You’ll find authoritative recommendations for stocking your cellar and kitchen with must-have beverages, from wines to waters. You’ll also learn what to drink with everything from French toast to Chinese food, and what to eat with everything from Pinot Noir to green tea, to create mouthwatering matches. Follow the authors three simple Rules to Remember when making a match - or just dive into the wide-ranging listings in chapters 5 and 6. "

I really really want to have this book on my bookshelf. It is amazing. It made me feel so much more at ease about pairing food with not only wine but tea, beer and other beverages. It mostly talks about wine though. It is put together in a way that makes it easy to follow - very user friendly. It is an essential reference for serving wine with a meal.

It not only goes in how to pair food and wine but a little bit of history, geography of wine such as what areas produce what types of wine, it gives how to actually taste wine and other expert techniques.

They had 3 simple rules to follow to when starting out...
1 - Think Regionally: If it grows together, it goes together.
2 - Come to your senses: Let your five sense guide your choices
3 - Balance Flavors: Tickle your tongue in more ways then one.

Of course they explain those rules indepth in the book. And make the process as easy as possible for those of us new to pairing beverages with food or foods with beverages. And it does go both ways in this book to make it very easy. Lets say someone gave you a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and you want to make something to go with it. You would look up Cabernet Sauvignon in the book and it has a list of food that go well with it. It has a list of herbs, meats, cheese, veggies, legumes, fruits and just everything you can think of but not only that it also tells you how to cook. Such as it said that Cabernet Sauvignon is good with grilled meats such as hamburgers and beef - braised, grilled, roasted or stewed. It also works the other way if you are serving chicken in cream sauce then it tells you what wine or beverage goes good with it it (Chardonnay - especially a full bodied California). It lists things in general too so if you aren't sure what you are going to do with the chicken yet. I just really loved how easy it was to follow.

As I said above I think this is an essential book for those of us serving wine with a meal.