The title of this post might lead you to believe that I followed up my Berlin sojourn with a jaunt to Bordeaux. Alliteration noted. And yet, non!
I did keep the alliteration going by heading home to Brooklyn instead. Fewer grand châteaux and world-class vineyards, but some excellent wine shops.
As it happens, my latest New Books Network interview, with photographer Peter Aaron and wine writer Jane Anson, the duo behind Bordeaux Chronicle, took place before I even packed for Berlin.
The book is a fascinating photographic journey through Bordeaux's changing landscape, beginning in 1969, when a 23-year-old Aaron hopped aboard a Vespa, Nikon in hand, to photograph 64 wine estates for an encyclopedia that never materialized. Fifty-five years later, he returned to find humble cellars transformed into architectural showpieces and a sleepy wine region turned global luxury powerhouse.
Thankfully, those long-forgotten photographs survived.
Paired with Aaron's contemporary images and Anson's deep knowledge of Bordeaux's wines, history and families, they tell a story about far more than what's in the bottle. We chatted about the people, the places, the changes and what's been lost along the way.
Enough to make a girl want to book a flight to France.
For now, though, Brooklyn it is.
Listen to my New Books Network interview with Peter Aaron and Jane Anson here.
And pour yourself a glass of Bordeaux while you're at it. Consider it research.