Blood Is Thicker Than Beaujolais

Wine Lover's Mysteries #1

by Tony Aspler

From Canada's most widely read crime writer. When internationally distinguished wine journalist Ezra Brant travels to France for the release of the renowned Beaujolais Nouveau, he never imagines that he will stumble into a web of murder, fraud and international intrigue - starting with a woman's body tumbling through a cellar trapdoor. While attempting to maintain his hectic schedule of wine tastings, award ceremonies and official banquets, Brant nevertheless manages to solve this complex puzzle in a surprising and original fashion.

416 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 1994

About the author

Tony Aspler has been writing about wine for more than 30 years, and today he is the most widely respected wine writer in Canada. He was the wine columnist for The Toronto Star for 21 years and has authored 14 books on wine and food, including The Wine Lover's Companion, The Wine Lover Cooks, Travels With My Corkscrew, Vintage Canada and The Wine Atlas of Canada. Tony's latest book, with chef Gurth Pretty, is The Definitive Canadian Wine & Cheese Cookbook.

Tony is an accomplished wine educator and lecturer. He averages 40–50 personal appearances a year at seminars and lectures.

Tony is the creator of the annual Ontario Wine Awards competition, an honorary governor of Cuvée and a director of the Independent Wine Education Guild. He is also a director of The Canadian Wine Library and a founding member of the Wine Writers Circle. At the Niagara Grape & Wine Festival 2000, Tony was presented with the "Royal Bank Business Citizen of the Year" Award. In 2007, Tony was made a Member of the Order of Canada for "his contributions as a leading authority on Canadian wines who has been key to the development of the Canadian wine industry."

Tony writes for a number of international wine magazines, including Wine Spectator, Wine Business International, Tidings, Post City Magazines, Lexpert, Fine Wine & Liquor (China), www.decanter.com and www.appellationamerica.com. He is the Canadian contributor to Tom Stevenson's annual Wine Report. You can hear Tony on 680News – Friday, Saturday and Sunday – talking about wine.

Tony also writes fiction. He is the author of nine novels. His latest series is a collection of wine murder mysteries featuring the itinerant wine writer/detective Ezra Brant: Blood Is Thicker Than Beaujolais, The Beast of Barbaresco and Death On The Douro (published by Warwick Publishing). He is currently working on Nightmare In Napa Valley.

In February 2001, Tony co-founded a charitable foundation with Arlene Willis. Grapes for Humanity raises money through the wine community for the victims of landmines and children with disabilities (www.grapesforhumanity.com).

Series:
* Wine Lover's Mysteries