# Wine Book Club: Gallo Be Thy Name



## jswordy (May 20, 2013)

I am grateful I stumbled across this thread - http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/f19/weekend-38214/
- because it motivated me to order all the books mentioned there from Abe Books, an online used bookseller.

Sunday, I read the entire "Gallo Be Thy Name" book. It is fascinating. Imagine my delight when my used book arrived and it was a library book stamped Fresno Library and San Joaquin Library System! The Fresno area is where the Gallos got their start! And the book was in excellent condition.

The book lays bare the cut-throat drive, hard work and ruthlessness it took to make the Gallo family the kings of winemakers. The underlying tension of a family secret long held draws the whole story together. At times the prose gets a bit formulaic, but overall it's a compelling work. I would not have read it all in one day if it weren't pretty riveting. 

Get yours at an online used bookseller. I paid $3 with shipping included for this hardback and got the delight of its place of origin at no extra charge. Check the link for more titles.

Anyone who has other wine-related books to recommend, please do so! We'll have a Wine Book Club!


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## JohnT (May 20, 2013)

Yup, It is a great read. 

"Gallo be thy name" is the unauthorized biography. There is another book (not so easy to find) that is the authorized biography. It to is a good read and describes things from the gallo brothers point of view.

Now you gotta read the house of mondavi. This one is even better!


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## GaDawg (May 20, 2013)

I have recently purchased "Harvests of Joy" by Robert Mondavi used but looks new and It's a *signed* copy


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## jswordy (May 20, 2013)

JohnT said:


> Yup, It is a great read.
> 
> "Gallo be thy name" is the unauthorized biography. There is another book (not so easy to find) that is the authorized biography. It to is a good read and describes things from the gallo brothers point of view.
> 
> Now you gotta read the house of mondavi. This one is even better!



I have that book and also The Billionaire's Vinegar, John.

I realize the Gallo book was "unauthorized." I can't recall anytime I have ever read an "authorized" biography. Too much gloss on those for my tastes, if you get my drift.


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## JohnT (May 21, 2013)

jswordy said:


> I have that book and also The Billionaire's Vinegar, John.
> 
> I realize the Gallo book was "unauthorized." I can't recall anytime I have ever read an "authorized" biography. Too much gloss on those for my tastes, if you get my drift.


 
LOL, I get you. Not so much of a biography as an advertisement.

I read the billionares vinegar several years back. The funniest part was that Ted was real mad at his son for spending that much money. Gee, it is so unfair how parents can be sometimes (LOL).

Another book to read is "the Wild Vine". It is all about the Nortan Grape. A little technical, but still a great read.

Also "Wine & War". it is all about the winemakers during WWII. Also, the capture of the wine cellar in Burchasgarden (sic).


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## Julie (May 21, 2013)

I found Gallo Be Thy Name on Amazon but it looks like two different books with the same auther comes up.


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## jswordy (May 21, 2013)

Julie: The author is Jerome Tuccille. You are looking at the same book. One at top is the print and Kindle version; the other is a Kindle electronic file version only.

The Amazon new price is not bad, considering that since my purchase all the used copies that were low priced seem to have been bought up off Abe Books site.

John: Just now cracking the cover on the Billionaire's Vinegar, so don't be a spoiler!  Started it last night.


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## Julie (May 21, 2013)

Thanks Jim


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## Deezil (May 21, 2013)

The House of Mondavi & The Billionaire's Vinegar were both good reads.. I still need to pick up Wine & War, and Gallo Be Thy Name - things to look forward to


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## JohnT (May 21, 2013)

jswordy said:


> Julie: The author is Jerome Tuccille. You are looking at the same book. One at top is the print and Kindle version; the other is a Kindle electronic file version only.
> 
> The Amazon new price is not bad, considering that since my purchase all the used copies that were low priced seem to have been bought up off Abe Books site.
> 
> John: Just now cracking the cover on the Billionaire's Vinegar, so don't be a spoiler!  Started it last night.


 
OK, Sorry. I assumed that you already read it. 

If you found "Gallo be thy name" a quick read, then Billionare's Vinevar will be even more so!


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## jswordy (May 22, 2013)

JohnT said:


> OK, Sorry. I assumed that you already read it.
> 
> If you found "Gallo be thy name" a quick read, then Billionare's Vinevar will be even more so!



Not done reading it yet, but I am already disgusted by the '70s practice of spitting out 1700s and 1800s vintages at tastings. You spit the toils of dead men on the ground? That reminds me why I am not a wine snob. Very well written book.


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## JohnT (May 22, 2013)

jswordy said:


> Not done reading it yet, but I am already disgusted by the '70s practice of spitting out 1700s and 1800s vintages at tastings. You spit the toils of dead men on the ground? That reminds me why I am not a wine snob. Very well written book.


 
Even a wine snob wouldn't to that JS.


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## jswordy (May 22, 2013)

Well they did. These were supposedly the most highly respected vinophiles in the world at that time. Meanwhile, all I am thinking is what an honor it would have been to have a 200+ year old wine inside my body that was made by the hand of some long-dead vintner. Not all the bottles were good, and I'd spit out vinegar, but the good stuff? Never!


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## moesagoodboy (May 23, 2013)

Found it on Ebay for $6.00, delivered. Gallo produced the first wine I ever enjoyed, Boones' Farm Apple. It acted as a calming effect after ingesting other chemicals. It was 55 cents a bottle at the time. 

Joe


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## JohnT (May 24, 2013)

moesagoodboy said:


> Found it on Ebay for $6.00, delivered. Gallo produced the first wine I ever enjoyed, Boones' Farm Apple. It acted as a calming effect after ingesting other chemicals. It was 55 cents a bottle at the time.
> 
> Joe


 

For us it was the strawberry. 
and it also mixed well with Jack Daniels... AH... Youth!


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## jswordy (May 24, 2013)

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYdWHK6AA6E[/ame]


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## Stressbaby (May 24, 2013)

This is just a second thumbs up for The Wild Vine. It was neat because we are familiar with lots of the wineries in the book here in MO.
I also recently enjoyed The Billionaire's Vinegar, so I may as well give that a second thumbs up as well.


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## Dylan (May 24, 2013)

Right now I'm reading Kevin Zraly's Complete Wine Course 2012 edition. It's a good read for beginners like me. 

This is a little off topic, but I recently watched Bottle Shock on Netflix. Good movie about the early days of Napa Valley and the French blind wine tasting. Based on a true story. I recommend it.


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## jswordy (May 27, 2013)

Two big thumbs up for The Wild Vine! Just finished it last night. 

He mentions so many other books in it, there's a lifetime of reading suggestions.

My first Norton will be made this year, so it was a timely read.


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## Stressbaby (May 27, 2013)

Another good on wine that I really enjoyed was the Judgment of Paris, the story of the Paris tasting of 1976. Amazon link.


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## JohnT (May 29, 2013)

Stressbaby said:


> Another good on wine that I really enjoyed was the Judgment of Paris, the story of the Paris tasting of 1976. Amazon link.


 

YES! This is the original book written by George Taber and was the basis for bottle shock. 

I recommend everyone read this book, especially if you have seen the movie! It shows just how much Hollywood changes the facts for the sake of entertainment.


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## jswordy (May 29, 2013)

OK, John! Abe Books, $3.95 shipped. On the way!


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## jswordy (Jun 3, 2013)

Finished the Mondavi book. 

The first half moved along well. But boy, it became a chore in the second half. The writing got flabbier as I went. Sentences something like, "A tasting was planned, and Mondavi teamed up with Rothschild to hold a tasting." 

A good editor could have shortened the book 80 or maybe even 100 pages and it would have been a better read overall. But it's got a big scope to it.


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## JohnT (Jun 3, 2013)

JS, 

Was this "the house of Mondavi"?


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## jswordy (Jun 3, 2013)

JohnT said:


> JS,
> 
> Was this "the house of Mondavi"?



Yeah, the rise and fall, etc. It started out really great but the back half was a slog, almost entirely due to sloppiness and lack of economy in writing. A good editor was needed. It was like the front half got edited and the back half, not so much. It took wine to get me through some of it. 

But like I say, it was ambitious in scope.


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## JohnT (Jun 4, 2013)

jswordy said:


> Yeah, the rise and fall, etc. It started out really great but the back half was a slog, almost entirely due to sloppiness and lack of economy in writing. A good editor was needed. It was like the front half got edited and the back half, not so much. It took wine to get me through some of it.
> 
> But like I say, it was ambitious in scope.


 

I agree. Felt like the writer just did not know when to quit.


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## jswordy (Jun 4, 2013)

JohnT said:


> I agree. Felt like the writer just did not know when to quit.




Hey John, for grins I looked up Constellation Brands on NASDAQ. In one year it has gone from $18.50 to $56.40. If you go to their website, the brands they own are unbelievably stout. Makes me wish I'd read the book last year.


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## moesagoodboy (Jun 4, 2013)

*Sometimes mistakes are good.*

So I ordered Gallo Be Thy Name and after a week a very flat package arrived. It was so flat that not even a page could be felt, let alone a book. Opening it I found nothing. I emailed the sender and they reported that they were using a new mailer envelope and that the adhesive was not sealing causing the book to fall out in transit. They refunded my money with apologies. 

I then ordered from Abes books. Searching by title I picked the first one of multiple copies available. Five days later it arrived not flat but 5 inches square. From the outside it looks like a child's book. Opening it I find I ordered the audio version ($6.00, delivered). My work commute by car is 100 minutes a day so this "mistake" is working out great. 

It's a good read, or should I say a good listen.

Joe


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## JohnT (Jun 5, 2013)

JS, 

What are you going to read next?


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## jswordy (Jun 5, 2013)

I am awaiting delivery of the used copy of Judgment of Paris, John. Should be here any day now.


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## ScottyB (Jun 5, 2013)

Another good book if you haven't read it is "A Good Year" by Peter Mayle. Good read and takes you through the French Provence. The movie was good too but like all movies it strayed some from the book. This is a non-fiction book but a good read.


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## JohnT (Jun 5, 2013)

JS. You will like it very much. 


Another good read is "A Vinyard in Tuscany" by Ferenc Mate. It is all about converting a 12th century tuscan abbey into a vineyard/winery.


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## jswordy (Jun 5, 2013)

Just paid $3.49 shipped for a very good hardcover copy of "A Good Year" with a dust jacket from good ol Abe. Thanks ScottyB.


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## ScottyB (Jun 5, 2013)

jswordy said:


> Just paid $3.49 shipped for a very good hardcover copy of "A Good Year" with a dust jacket from good ol Abe. Thanks ScottyB.



Your welcome JS I hope you like it. If you do he has others in the same genre.


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