The feel of a crisp binding and smooth cover is a sensual experience. When the spine cracks and the edges fray, a good book develops even more character.
I’m hardly the poster child for this preservation society - most of my reading time is on a kindle. Convenient enough to fit in my pocket and practical enough to hold several dozen volumes. But hardly shelfworthy.
I’d like to believe it’s the content that matters. Engaging or well curated writing should cut through the medium - and yet, if I get passed a QR code or a tablet in a restaurant, minus two points off the bat.
Hemingway may have ruled the Left Bank, but there’s something different about turning the pages at La Tour d’Argent. In this bastion of haute French cuisine they wheel over a little cart, upon which sits a four inch thick, bound leather volume. Vertical after vertical of every prestigious estate. This isn’t a tightly curated Man Booker shortlist, but an Encyclopedia Britannica of every bottle of wine that matters.
Just like the perfectly choreographed service, and tables aligned so that everyone gets a view of Notre Dame - this is as much about the show as anything. In fact, if you look at most Michelin star restaurants, their wine lists are pretty similar. Krug and Dom Perignon appear on 42% of these. Good bubbles for sure, but hardly an insightful selection.
Pairing is a complex balance of the individual, the product, and the context. Defaults…
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