Tom Stevenson Explained

Tom Stevenson
Birth Place:Tunbridge Wells, England
Occupation:Author, wine writer, wine critic, wine judge
Nationality:British

Tom Stevenson (born 1951) is a British wine writer and critic.

Stevenson is regarded as an expert on Champagne and Alsace wine.[1] [2] [3] [4] He has written 23 books.[5]

Career

Stevenson began writing for Decanter magazine in 1981, and during the mid-1980s he started The Sunday Telegraph Good Wine Guide.[6] [7] By 1991 was also writing for Wine & Spirit.[8]

Stevenson's 1986 book Champagne and 1993 book The Wines of Alsace were very positively received.[9] [10] The former exposed the practice of In 1998, he wrote Christie's World Encyclopedia of Champagne & Sparkling Wine. This book published a 17th-century document for the first time proving the English used the secondary fermentation process before the French were claimed to have invented champagne,[11] [12] although describing this as the British invented champagne has been criticised as unscholarly.[13] Stevenson's The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, first published in 1988, had sold 750,000 copies in more than a dozen languages as of 2011. Despite receiving some very positive reviews,[14] [15] [16] [17] it has been criticised for its accuracy.[18] [19] In addition to the books authored by Stevenson, he conceived and edited the Wine Report.[20] It was published annually between 2003 and 2008, and was cancelled as the high fees of having forty-five, occasionally notable authors made the book unprofitable.[21]

From its inception in 2004 to 2012, Stevenson held the chair of Champagne panel of the Decanter World Wine Awards. He has judged at wine competitions in Australia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, South Africa, the UK and the USA. In 2014 Stevenson started the Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships, which as of 2024 he chairs.[22] [23] Writer Huon Hooke has described the competition as "arguably the world’s most important venue for judging sparkling wine."[24] Wines are reviewed by the same three judges every year for consistency over a period of almost two weeks. Until his death in 2019, these judges were Tony Jordan and Essi Avellan.[25]

Stevenson has repeatedly presented the Christie's Champagne Masterclass in London.[26]

He has written for wine-pages.com, including contributing a "Wine aromas and flavours" resource which was praised by Patrick Comiskey in the LA Times.[27] [28] As of 2024 he writes for The World of Fine Wine magazine.

Views on wine

Stevenson cites The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson as an early influence on his attitude towards wine.

Stevenson believes the parellada, macabeo and xarel·lo grape varieties are not are suited for the second fermentation used in the traditional method of champagne production.[29] [30]

Accolades

In 1987 Stevenson was elected a confrère oenophile of the Confrérie Saint Etienne, when he was the sole person amongst the Alsace wine producers and other experts present to identify a 50-year-old wine made from the Silvaner grape variety.[31]

He has been nominated for "Wine Writer of the Year" at least three times and has won the Wine Literary Award, America's lifetime achievement award for wine writing.[32]

Selected publications

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Hall . Allan . 28 December 2007 . Champagne land values to bubble upwards . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20071229231541/http://news.scotsman.com/world/Champagne-land-values-to-bubble.3624486.jp . 29 December 2007 . The Scotsman.
  2. News: Hawthorne . Mark . 10 November 2011 . Vintage Moet's cachet dialled up to 11 . 12 July 2024 . The Age.
  3. News: Crosariol . Beppi . 6 September 2011 . Surprise! One of Canada's best wines is from Nova Scotia . 12 July 2024 . The Globe and Mail.
  4. Liem . Peter . Peter Liem . September–October 2000 . Book Review: Everything Alsace . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20050208151419/http://www.rieslingreport.com/pdf/RR04-Alsace1998.pdf . 8 February 2005 . Riesling Report . 3.
  5. Web site: Author Bio: Tom Stevenson . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240520195118/https://worldoffinewine.com/author/tomstevenson1 . 20 May 2024 . 12 July 2024 . The World of Fine Wine.
  6. Web site: Stevenson . Tom . History . 12 July 2024 . Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships.
  7. Web site: Stevenson . Tom . 28 November 2011 . On Sotheby’s 5th Edition . 12 July 2024 . GuildSomm.
  8. News: Fisher . Lawrence M . 25 December 1991 . Can California Sparkling Wine Taste Like Champagne? The Quest Goes On . 12 July 2024 . The New York Times.
  9. Web site: Wine Report: Tom Stevenson . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080705192434/http://www.champagne-lenoble.com/uk/presse/LENOBLEUKPRESSEWINEREPORT.htm . 5 July 2008 . Champagne A.R. Lenoble.
  10. Web site: 3 November 2006 . Tom Stevenson Interview . July 11, 2024 . vynai.com . Lietuvos ryte.
  11. Web site: Decanter World Wine Awards: Judges . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081210154707/http://www.decanter.com/worldwineawards/judges1.php . 10 December 2008 . 11 July 2008 . Decanter.
  12. News: Eagles . Jim . 2 June 2007 . England: English wine comes of age . 12 July 2024 . The New Zealand Herald.
  13. Web site: Edwards . Michael . 20 January 2014 . A review of Christie’s World Encyclopedia of Champagne & sparkling wine (Absolute Press) . 12 July 2024 . TimAtkin.com.
  14. News: Atkin . Tim . Tim Atkin . 11 December 2005 . The word on the vine . July 11, 2024 . .
  15. Web site: Gray . W Blake . 8 December 2005 . Train your brain with these tomes . 11 July 2024 . SFGate.
  16. News: 19 December 1988 . Books: A Holiday Hamper Of Glowing Gift Titles . 12 July 2024 . Time.
  17. News: McIntyre . Dave . 4 January 2015 . An old wine reference guide holds up well, 26 years later . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150104160514/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/an-old-wine-reference-guide-holds-up-well-26-years-later/2015/01/03/5554441a-8d57-11e4-a085-34e9b9f09a58_story.html . 4 January 2015 . 12 July 2024 . The Washington Post.
  18. Book: Pendock, Neil . Sour Grapes . NB Publishers . 2008 . 978-0-624-04613-4 . Cape Town . 41 . 1359393807 . registration.
  19. News: Hooke . Huon . 6 December 2011 . A good year, cover to cover . 12 July 2024 . The Sydney Morning Herald.
  20. Web site: Robinson . Jancis . Jancis Robinson . 21 November 2003 . Vintage 2003 wine books . 11 July 2024 . JancisRobinson.com.
  21. Web site: Peskett . Stuart . 25 August 2009 . Bleak future for Wine Report as publisher pulls plug . 11 July 2024 . Decanter.
  22. Web site: The Judges . 12 July 2024 . Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships.
  23. News: Robinson . Jancis . Jancis Robinson . 20 September 2014 . Best champagnes and sparkling wines . subscription . https://web.archive.org/web/20140921031830/https://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/-the-best-fizz-in-the-world . 21 September 2014 . 12 July 2024 . Financial Times.
  24. Web site: Hooke . Huon . Huon Hooke . 12 September 2015 . New Zealand gets some food for thought from Tom Stevenson . 12 July 2024 . The Real Review.
  25. Web site: Siddle . Richard . 9 July 2024 . Tom Stevenson takes us behind the scenes of 10 years of CSWWC . 12 July 2024 . The Buyer.
  26. Web site: Christie's Education: Masterclasses . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080803081143/http://www.christies.com/services/education/london.aspx?s=6 . 3 August 2008 . Christie's.
  27. News: Comiskey . Patrick . Patrick Comiskey . 22 February 2006 . Swirl, sniff, sip, search and blog . 11 July 2024 . Los Angeles Times.
  28. Web site: Stevenson . Tom . 2 March 2003 . Wine aromas and flavours . 11 July 2024 . wine-pages.com.
  29. Web site: Fox . Nick . June 19, 2009 . The Wrong Grape Can Make Sparkling Wines Seem Flat . 12 July 2024 . "Diner's Journal" Blog . The New York Times.
  30. Web site: Moore . Victoria . 11 July 2009 . Wine . 12 July 2024 . The Guardian.
  31. Book: Stevenson, Tom . Wine Report 2006 . . 2005 . 978-0756613204 . Werner . Gary . Wine Report . New York . 39 . 69944925 . Tuite . Simon . registration.
  32. Web site: Wine Report 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20071004101619/http://us.dk.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780756631659,00.html . 4 October 2007 . 11 July 2024 . DK.

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