Mr. Meltzer is a solid writer with an excellent wine industry pedigree. He is a collector himself and is the knowledgeable auction correspondent for Wine Spectator as well as being a contributing editor for Food Arts. His column in Wine Spectator is generally the first thing I read in that publication. Along with the "collector spotlight" segment, it is also often the part of the magazine I enjoy the most.
Unfortunately, I found this book somewhat poorly formatted. I think the problem is that the Mr. Meltzer tries to reach too broad an audience while simultaneously providing very pointed material. Truly, this is a book for the serious wine collector, or for the individual with a lot of capital looking to begin collecting. Either way, it is really meant for someone who is looking at wine collecting as an investment vehicle. In that respect, it serves its purpose and certainly deserves the attention of individuals in those categories.
The book starts with a chapter entitled, "A Cellar To Fit Your Lifestyle", setting the reader up for the expectation that the rest of the book is going to follow a model which is tailored to multiple audiences. However, this expectation is at odds with the actual direction of the following chapters. Successive chapters include "Buying and Selling Wine At Auction," and a historical breakdown, "Collecting: A Brief Background," as well as a discussion of The Wine Spectator Auction Index. These are all topics which I find fascinating, but which I believe could be intimidating for someone interested in starting a moderate or low-end collection. It almost feels as though Mr. Meltzer's editor insisted on the inclusion of the first chapter in order to increase the book's sales, after the rest of the book had already been written.
Some of the most enjoyable and interesting segments of the book are the mid-chapter interludes of either case-studies or anecdotes. I suspect that several of these interludes are really just reprints of Mr. Meltzer's Wine Spectator columns, or at least pull quite heavily from them. In many ways, these interludes could make up their own book. If that were the case, it would make for an infinitely easier volume to move through. As it is, the way they are distributed in the book can be distracting and bog the reader down. Additionally, their content is not always directly relevant to the chapter in which they located, thus making them feel as though they're included in a somewhat pell-mell fashion.
Finally, the writing can also feel overly cerebral and somewhat patronizing at turns. The numerous charts and detailed auction information can also feel overwhelming with the small typeface.
At any rate, part of me loves this book for providing information that serious collectors will find useful and which I found highly informative. The rest of me dislikes it for setting itself up as a collecting guide for the masses but then potentially alienating that readership with the layout and content.Get more detail about Keys to the Cellar: Strategies and Secrets of Wine Collecting.
