By Don Ellis
 t’s not really a cookbook without one, is it - the “Easy Cocktail Party” section with the theme metaphor, complete with tips, cocktails and glossy photos? Two of Canada's top food and wine authorities - Lucy Waverman and James Chatto - successfully capture this trend in their big book with the equally big name, “A Matter of Taste: Inspired Seasonal Menus with Wines and Spirits to Match.”
That ‘Easy Cocktail Section’ is the rallying scream in “A Matter of Taste.” It is in this section -and through the course of four chapters - Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter - Chatto leads the readers through classical culinary technique adapted for an updated lifestyle (and kitchen), all with the casual, accessible tone that he has brought to his column in Toronto Life. "Take charge! Experiment!," he writes in his introduction, "Put your favourite recipes together to create menus that suit your own taste."
And while it’s finely tuned in the traditional sense, it is in the way authors Lucy Waverman and James Chatto present the beast of a collection. As Chatto puts it early on, the book is not about one sector or even a collection of recipes. “One example is worth a thousand words of theory.” The book, for all narrative purposes, is about two people passionate about food - handholding us through aperitif and cocktail pairing with the whys and wherefores explored in irreverent prose.
When we get to the sexy close-ups of plates, garnishes and cocktails, we know exactly what their dreams are. My knee-jerk endorsement used to go to the standard The Joy Of Cooking, a clear, comprehensive text and standard of basic cookery. But the Joy's text-heavy format skimps on a vital educational tool: pictures. A picture may be worth a thousand words on the open market, but Chatto and Waverman clearly know that from the novice cook's perspective, a picture can mean the difference between success and yet another textbook failure.
A Matter Of Taste - clocking in at over 500 pages (4 lbs) focuses on elementary kitchen techniques and (most importantly for the beginner) doesn't skimp on the visual aids. It is probably the most exhaustive picture book of its kind, and, while it will surely end up on many coffee tables, is by far the best written of late.
The book, which provides copious space to the aforementioned Cocktail Party – which is as satisfying as the recipes themselves – takes plenty of time as well in developing the sensibilities of the authors themselves. The team also makes excellent use of sidebars for clever tips on garnishes, spices, or experimental issues.
Working closely with Photographer Rob Fiocca, whose work is regularly featured in Gourmet magazine, which employs a jittery, washed-out color palette to capture food items in images of astonishing vividness. Together, the team has fashioned a book that, more than any other, conveys both the passion and the emotional exuberance of a pastime that, in an increasing amount of households, is now even more of an obsession.
A Matter of Taste will end up under many Christmas trees this year, but no matter what one's level of kitchen expertise, it's highly unlikely that any cook will ever outgrow this big beast of a book. - D.E. | A Matter of Taste
The book, which provides copious space to The Cocktail Party - which is as satisfying as the recipes themselves - takes plenty of time in developing the sensibilities of the authors.
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