![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDO43MGsdk9aEv7q-z5nGwLRN-v3TZ_4HJUEIiteAkTFc8VekcKCIrsB02HxduqZ5SLth8EryS-7QXxu7_8Ws6RdWBZ_8n9vqk3z9YBjRsd3UBuyWjaU0HniAf0KT52r-TQuEC/s400/WineJournal.jpg)
A dedicated wine book isn't mandatory, but if you set your keys on it during a tasting you're not liable to leave it behind. Also, in theory you can keep several volumes over the years and collect them on your bookshelf. And while taking notes on a laptop can be expeditious, there's always that worry about spillage. A few bucks worth of Chardonnay can turn a $1000 laptop into a $0 paperweight. It doesn't matter if you have a wine blog or merely enjoy wine--if you take a few minutes to transcribe your thoughts about each bottle you try, you'll learn a lot about wine within a year.
One such printed wine book is The Wine Journal by Jennifer McCartney. $10.36, Skyhorse Publishing, 272 pages.
The first 30 pages are just some basic wine terms and a few quotes. The remainder of the book is comprised of pages set up for taking notes.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZWKqJFThsdbI2DV38SZJqPpbAk3L5yY-ZVGjjibQUVBLPLB8fnwIAxqevmPi5roov3HrDokceKOuGx6YWCk9gF8K_zN6EzBeVlySW2Evg9r3zl5VODQSTtwgcKC_JVkaJgH6_/s400/WineJournal-Inside.jpg)
The pages in this book are glossy stock, thicker than regular book pages. What you're writing on is the kaolin coating, not the wood-based paper itself. I could get into a whole discussion on substrates, but this isn't a printing blog and I'm not going to go into how tentacular polymers adhere to certain stocks. Let's just say that my background in printing means that I know a lot about paper and ink. I wrote on the page using five different common writing tools: Sharpie, pencil, mechanical pencil, ballpoint pen, gel ink pen. I let everything sit with the book open for 30 minutes, did a smear test with my thumb, and everything worked except for the gel. The rollerball style pens are going to smear on this kind of stock.
That being said, I like the size and look of this book--it will fit into your pants pockets or purse, and there's enough room in the various categories to write out what you're tasting. Particularly "Shared With"--it's something I often leave off the blog for privacy reasons, but it's nice to look back over your notes and remember with whom you enjoyed a certain bottle. Consider this another possible wine gift for the upcoming Christmas season, especially for those wine lovers who are just starting out.
Note: This book was received as a sample.