This is another book that’s not directly related to cocktails and spirits, but one that should appeal to any “bon vivant” who enjoys food, travel, and wine, and even those with an entrepreneurial bent. The book recounts Sergio Esposito’s adventures as he travels through Italy and the surrounding country on wine buying tips for his store in Manhattan, integrating wine knowledge, his family’s migration to the US, his career trajectory, and mouth-watering descriptions of wine tastings and exceptional meals.

Having spent six months living in the Abruzzo region of Italy, I can vouch for the fact that Mr. Esposito’s descriptions of food and drink are the next best thing to the seven hour flight, minus the jet lag and calories. The writing, while colorful, never gets overly pretentious, and there were no belabored and painful descriptions of “murky tastes of swamp water from the northeastern bogs of Lombardy on a cold third Tuesday in fall” or the usual overdrawn wine “tasting notes” nonsense. You can however sense Esposito’s joy at the stuff, and the reader feels like he being taken on a tour by a friendly guide who loves what he is sharing with you.

If you’re planning a trip to Italy, or merely a fan of armchair travel, this is a great read, although you may be hit with a sudden urge to sell everything you own, hop on a plane, and open a wine store!