Taste the Limestone, Smell the Slate – book review

Tamlyn Currin

Wednesday 15 April 2026 • 19 min read

Front cover - Taste the Limestone, Smell the Slate

Essential reading for anyone who’s ever confused tuff with tufa or wondered what the fuss is over Rutherford dust. Though you might not give up ‘minerality’ quite yet.

Taste the Limestone, Smell the Slate
A geologist wanders through the world of wine
Alex Maltman
Published by Academie du Vin Library
ISBN 9781917084628
£35

It was 10 years ago that Jancis wrote, in Holes in the ground, and in our knowledge, about Professor Alex Maltman demolishing our belief in the connection between geology and soil with the wine in our glass. In that article she wrote, with some feeling, that...

Member

$135

/year

Save over 15% annually

Ideal for wine enthusiasts

Access 296,559 wine reviews & 16,125 articles
Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
Access askJancis, our AI wine assistant

Pay with

Gift this membership

Inner Circle

$249

/year

Ideal for collectors

Everything in “Member”, plus:

Early access to the latest wine reviews, 48 hours in advance
Early access to the latest articles, 48 hours in advance

Pay with

See all available plans

Professional

$299

/year

For individual wine professionals

Access 296,559 wine reviews & 16,125 articles
Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
Access askJancis, our AI wine assistant
Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
Commercial use of up to 25 wine reviews & scores for marketing

Pay with

Gift this membership

Business

$399

/year

For companies in the wine trade

Everything in “Professional”, plus:

Commercial use of up to 250 wine reviews & scores for marketing
Access to submit wines for review
Offer memberships to your employees and manage them from a single place
API access available for an additional fee

Number of seats:

Pay with

See all available plans

Discuss this article

Members can discuss and create threads. Not a member? Join today.

More Book reviews

Book reviews

Wine & War – worth rereading

A reminder of wine’s power to restore humanity, humour and hope in times of conflict. Wine & War The French...

Japanese Wine by Nick Rowan - book cover

Book reviews

Japan wine – an essential guide

Nick Rowan’s new book is an amazingly complete guide to the wine (and cheese!) of Japan, for amateurs and professionals...

Judgement of Paris 50th Anniversary book cover

Book reviews

The Judgement of Paris – book review

A magnificent paean to an event that changed the wine world – just in time for its 50th anniversary on...

Classic Wine Library - The Wines of Beaujolais cover

Book reviews

New books on Beaujolais and Burgundy

Deep – and enjoyable – dives into two of France’s most misunderstood regions. Reasons to love Beaujolais The Wines of...

More from JancisRobinson.com

Chris Keets (left) and Banele Vanele (right)

Tasting articles

South Africa's reds, from classic to cutting edge

Proof that South Africa remains one of the most rewarding countries for wine. Above, Chris Keets (left) of Weather Report...

Lasseter Trinity Ridge Vineyard - Michael Housewright photography

Tasting articles

Moon Mountain – Sonoma's volcanic organic stronghold

The combination of historic vineyards, high elevation, volcanic soils and organic viticulture make this little-known AVA stand out. Above, Lasseter...