Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book 2026

The brand-new edition of the unrivalled Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book, the world's bestselling annual wine guide, including an extra 32 pages for 2026 and a special supplement on the pricing of wine and how to get the best value in every bottle you drink, with illustrations by New Yorker cartoonist, Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell.

Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book is the essential reference book for everyone who buys wine - in shops, restaurants, or on the internet. Now in its 49th year of publication, with 32 extra pages for this new edition, it has no rival as the comprehensive, up-to-the-minute annual guide to wine.

Providing clear succinct facts and commentary on the wines, growers and wine regions of the whole world, the book also reveals which vintages to buy, which to drink and which to cellar, as well as the best growers to look for and why. Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book 2026 gives clear information on grape varieties, local specialities and how to match food with wines that will bring out the best in both.

This latest edition of Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book includes a supplement on the pricing of wine, explaining why some wines are more expensive than others, the actual costs behind vineyards and winemaking, and how we can use this knowledge to buy cleverly at a time when wine prices are rising. New Yorker cartoonist, Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell, provides the illustrations.

About the Author

Hugh Johnson has led the world of wine writing in many new directions over the six decades since his first book, Wine, was published in 1966. The World Atlas of Wine, his Wine Companion (now in its sixth edition), the annual Pocket Wine Book (since 1977), The Story of Wine, following a 13-part TV series, and his memoirs, A Life Uncorked, have all been bestsellers. In 2004, Hugh was made a Chevalier of the Ordre National du Mérite by President Chirac, and in 2007, he was awarded an OBE for services to winemaking and horticulture, two of his great passions.

Margaret Rand took over Pocket Wine after Hugh Johnson's retirement, having worked on the book with him for a couple of decades. Her career in wine has embraced writing, tasting, editing, commenting and a certain amount of stirring up; she is known for her independence and for the breadth and depth of her knowledge. Her books include Grapes & Wines and 101 Wines to Try Before You Die; she writes regularly for World of Fine Wine, timatkin.com and winesearcher.com. She is fascinated by way wine connects with history, geography, geology, economics, politics, food and - of course - wit.