I love natty wines and I love all books centered around wines. It's a totally millenial memoir in how it reads, and Signer herself is a mess and unlikeable at times. But it was still an interesting read.

This, unfortunately, didn’t land with me. I don’t know if I just didn’t identify with the writer or if the subject matter wasn’t interesting to me or what. It just sort of fell flat.

Same issues as other reviewers in that it's clear the author has passion for the topic but the writing faltered a great deal and made it hard to really keep up with the narrative thread and maintain interest.

This book really shined when Rachel was writing about natural wines. It is so clearly her background and she is talented at it. I had an appreciation for natural wine prior to reading this, which is why I picked it in the first place. Rachel’s thoughts on natural wine and her knowledge of the processes behind it were fascinating to me. If you are a fan of natural wine, you will also enjoy this book! Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Hachette Publishing and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of You Had Me at Pet-Nat by Rachel Signer. In exchange I offer my honest review.
This memoir is now available for purchase.

I read this book months ago and I thought I had already written and shared my review. My apologies for the late feedback.

Rachel Singer has penned a memoir/ food/ wine travelogue which should have really been a hit for me but instead I found trite and disappointing. I think reading this book during a pandemic, especially when I was on lockdown, made me resent the dilemmas Rachel writes about. Her life was charmed, yet she doesn’t see or appreciate any of the opportunities she had. Additionally the process of making natural wine was dry and boring. This might have been more of a personal taste issue than a structural issue.

I had hoped You Had Me At Pét-Nat would be a hybrid of Sweetbitter and Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential. But, this self-proclaimed “wine-soaked memoir” was wine-splattered at best.

This memoir definitely reads more like a novel, and I did like the sprinkles of natural wine-making education throughout.

I mostly felt letdown and unimpressed by the author’s pursuit of her “Wildman,” and giving up her dreams in the process. Plus, that nickname itself just makes me cringe. The story did get better, I saw a shift around 70% and finally started getting into the storyline. I think at that point in the storyline, the author seemed more secure with the path her life had taken.

I found a lot of the dialogue to be pretty matter-of-fact, and the storyline could have vastly improved with some creative storytelling. Especially when it came to all of the amazing travels to picturesque winemaking places that they venture to.

Overall, You Had Me at Pét Nat fell flat for me, unlike the naturally sparkling & unfiltered wine it’s named for.

I received this eBook free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

2.5. I wanted to love this, but I didn't connect with the writing style--it didn't feel like a memoir so much as a treatise on wine-making and natural wines with a hint of romance thrown in. With the lack of detail about herself, Signer comes across as a little entitled, so I didn't connect with her either. The parts about wine-making were mildly interesting, but I'd have preferred more details about her journey and her feelings.

Thank you for the EArc NetGalley and Hachette. This book was informative and parts intriguing. I enjoy learning new things however it wasn’t the book for me. It took time to get into even mildly and it was hard to finish.

A funny, relevant, and heartfelt look at modern life through the eyes of current wine culture. It's really incredibly readable and wonderful.

I loved the incorporation of food and lifestyle in “you had me at pet-nat”. Not a typical book I would read but I really enjoyed it and think most would.

This book is great book about self discovery. It reminds me of the Sweetbitter a bit. It has all those elements where you think your going to land up in one place and you land up in a completely different place and even though you stumble alone the way you learn life lessons and land up better than you ever imagined.

Rachel Signer can definitely write. I really thought her prose and the way she expresses herself was very beautiful and relatable. This book had a lot of going for it, which is very funny because I'm not even a wine drinker - but still I've been wanting to read more nonfiction lately. Since I'm in the minority - I think if was a lover of wine, I would've enjoyed this more. It was interesting learning about natural wine, and all the hard work that goes in to the field, but I kept getting sidetracked when Rachel started talking about her love life. This book seemed more about her issues with commitment than her experiences in winery. I didn't love this book, but I didn't hate it either. Very middle of the road for me. All the stars for that glorious cover though. Wow!

I hate to say this because I'm really interested in wine, but I'm finding this book to be a repetitive snooze, and I can't bring myself to finish. Maybe I'll try again some other time?

Reading You Had Me at Pet-Nat made me want to become an expert in natural wine. I now dream of owning a winery in France or Australia. I don't know anything about wine, so this felt educational to me. While not a huge wine connoisseur, I really enjoyed Signer's stories about her life experiences and travel tales. I liked the balance of factual information vs the details of the subculture surrounding natural wine.

Some parts felt slow, and I found myself doing more research to better understand natural wine and the wine-making process. This was a great memoir, but not one that left me with a long-lasting impression.

You Had Me at Pet-Nat by Rachel Singer is a gripping story of self discovery and adventure similar to Eat, Pray Love. The cover art is beautiful, and the memoir offers a wealth of information about the wine making industry.

I've read several wine related memoirs, but none like this. Modern and very well written. You felt like you were there with Rachel. Experiencing what she was and feeling what she was. For younger wine professionals or those thinking of breaking into the field I highly recommend this read. Sometimes you stumble upon things and you have no idea how greatly they will affect your life and change it, this book demonstrates how just one encounter, one decision can snowball and change everything.

I DNF this around 30%. I thought the plot was a good idea, however, the writing was just not for me.

Reading this made me want to learn about (and drink) natural wine. It gave me a case of wanderlust as well, and an urge to break from the 9-5 routine, as the author traveled country to country. It felt a bit long though, and perhaps a tad slow. And the romance - while interesting to see the complications of loving someone but being forced to change lifestyles to be with them - was a bit unsatisfying. Which is weird to say about a memoir. Also, the end was very sudden. But here I am googling the Lucy Margaux Farm and other wines mentioned, so something about this read did resonant with me. 3.5

This book didn't really catch me at all. It was interesting and I learned a lot, and I've worked at two wine bars so I was excited to read it. The book fell flat for me and took longer to get through than expected.

Itching to travel? You Had Me at Pet-Nat will at least temporarily fulfill your wanderlust while you're stuck at home. - although it will definitely leave you craving a glass of wine!