Another terrific book by this writer (A Wine Journey Along The Russian River the other). It is inspired by the 1977 book: Great WineMakers of Calif: Conversations With Robert Benson. I found that book a bit on the trite side and the questions a bit repetitive and scripted ("Do you do a ML fermentation", "What oak do you use", etc). Steve does a far/far better job than Benson did. Each "conversation" reflects a deep & thorough knowledge of each winemaker and his wines. He sits down w/ each winemaker and simply has a "conversation" with them and writes down their responses. But each "conversation" is different. He does an excellent job of ferreting out their uniqueness. His interview w/ Tony Soter is particularly good in which Soter discusses high alcohol levels in wine (I know...subject's been beaten to death) and makes some unflattering comments on serveral (unnamed) wine critics.
It's broken down into winemakers who rose to prominance in the '70's, the '80's, and the '90's. It's a bit of an personal and idiosyncratic selection of winemakers, but..hey..he didn't ask me for my choices.
Anyway.... well-written (for a Q&A format) and interesting read. Highly recommended. I look forward to Steve's next book.
TomHill