Vintage

About the novel

A humorous and evocative debut novel about a food journalist’s desperate attempt to save his career–and possibly, his marriage–by tracking an infamous bottle of wine stolen by the Nazis more than half a century ago.

Buy it here

Ten years ago, Bruno Tannenbaum was a passionate food journalist with a respected newspaper column, a popular TV show, and a bestselling guide to relationships through food. These days, Bruno is a passionate ‘has-been’ living on his mother’s couch, separated from his wife and daughters, eating his way through an ever-dwindling bank account, faced with the gnawing doubt that he’ll never be the journalist he once was.

Then Bruno stumbles on the secret to one of the world’s ‘lost wines,’ stolen by the Nazis during the Second World War and presumed lost to the world for good. Recognizing his one chance at reviving his career, he scrapes together his last resources and sets off on an exciting food-filled quest that leads him from the rolling hills of Burgundy to a raucous wedding in Moldova, to a Beaune Bacchanal and the greying walls of a Russian prison, as he attempts to find this extremely valuable wine and prove himself as the writer, father, and husband he knows he can be.

Vintage is an exhilarating debut that reads like a delectable food memoir combined with a daring travelogue, including mouthwatering recipes and audacious wine pairings. It is a deliciously scintillating story.

More Praise for Vintage

“What fun: a sort of Sam Spade voice, tough as a film noir character, runs delightfully amok in the wine and gourmet worlds in this hilarious and evocative debut.” – Richard Morais, author of The Hundred-Foot Journey and Buddhaland Brooklyn

“Baker gets his spellbinding debut off to a rousing start with a great setup and an endearing protagonist, a bon vivant who rambles from Chicago to France, Germany, eastern Europe, and Moscow, enjoying fantastic meals and drinks along the way, as he searches for the lost wine—and, just maybe, for himself. A feast for all readers, with a warning only to those on a diet!”
– Library Journal

“An excellent pairing with just about any book club.”
– Portland Tribune

“Vintage is a once a mouthwatering culinary tale, an evocative look at the strength it takes to create the life we want, and a delicious adventure.”
– Nina Mukerjee Furstenau, MFK Fisher Book Award Winning author of Biting Through the Skin

“An improbable hero, a decades-old mystery, a globe-trotting pursuit, and starring roles for fine food and great wine. What’s not to love?”
– Katherine Cole, author of Voodoo Vintners, Complete Wine Selector, and How to Fake Your Way through a Wine List

“Earthy, soulful, suspenseful, and comic all at once, David Baker’s beautiful and quietly audacious debut is not to be missed.”
– Carole Maso, author of Ghost Dance, Defiance, and Beauty is Convulsive

“Yes, it’s about wine but it’s also about so much more. It kept me turning pages, which is the real test. A modern odyssey in the classic sense of the term. It’s an intriguing, evocative and seductive narrative.”
– Warwick Ross, director/producer of the AACTA best documentary, Red Obsession