Divided Spirits tells the stories of tequila and mezcal, two of Mexico's most iconic products. In doing so, the book illustrates how neoliberalism influences the production, branding, and regulation of local foods and drinks. It also challenges the strategy of relying on "alternative" markets to protect food cultures and rural livelihoods. In recent years, as consumers increasingly demand to connect with the people and places that produce their food, the concept of terroir-the taste of place-has become more and more prominent. Tequila and mezcal are both protected by denominations of origin (DOs), legal designations that aim to guarantee a product's authenticity based on its link to terroir. Advocates argue that the DOs expand market opportunities, protect cultural heritage, and ensure the reputation of Mexico's national spirits. Yet this book shows how the institutions that are supposed to guard "the legacy of all Mexicans" often fail those who are most in need of protection: the small producers, agave farmers, and other workers who have been making tequila and mezcal for generations. The consequences-for the quality and taste of tequila and mezcal, and for communities throughout Mexico-are stark. Divided Spirits suggests that we must move beyond market-based models if we want to safeguard local products and the people who make them. Instead, we need systems of production, consumption, and oversight that are more democratic, more inclusive, and more participatory. Lasting change is unlikely without the involvement of the state and a sustained commitment to addressing inequality and supporting rural development.

This illustrated introduction to Chinese wine explores the history of wine production in China, the legends and customs that surround it and its place in China today. Traditionally, Chinese wine and spirits were made from grain, and had three important uses: to perform rituals, to dispel one's worries and to heal. Today, wine is still believed to have a therapeutic benefit, but the Chinese beverage industry has expanded on a large scale and now includes famous brands of beer and, increasingly, vineyards producing red and white wine for global consumption. Chinese Wine is indispensable reading for both wine-lovers and all those with an interest in the transition from traditional to modern Chinese culture.

In the recent years, Cava has taken the stage as Spain's star sparkling wine, not only thanks to its remarkable quality to price ratio, but also because more and more connoisseurs are recognizing its richness and complexity. This book offers a great overview of the Cava's origins, its elaboration, and its variety of tastes. You will learn all you need to know about the grapes, the traditional methods, as well as established and emerging premium Cava producers. Recipes of traditional Catalonian dishes that perfectly accompany a Cava dinner round off this concise, but very informative book.

This title covers everything from the Singapore Sling and the Cosmopolitan to the Martini, with 565 drinks, juices and smoothies shown in more than 1000 photographs. It is a complete guide to making 565 cocktails, juices and smoothies using spirits, liqueurs, wine, beer, mixers, fruits, vegetables, milk, cream and ice cream. It includes all-time classics such as the Gin Sling, Screwdriver and Buck's Fizz, more unusual drinks such as the Barbarella, Blue Hawaiian and Loch Ness, and luxurious juices and smoothies such as the Humzinger, Iced Mango Lassi and Purple Haze. It features an illustrated directory of all the basic types of alcohol and mixers available, including both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, plus a guide to cocktail-making equipment, glasses and garnishes. It includes a useful glossary of drinks terminology to help you tell the difference between a julep and a smash, a fizz and a frappe, a cup and a punch. This authoritative reference is an essential guide to cocktails, juices and smoothies, and how to mix them. It contains an overview of the different types of alcohol and mixers available: spirits such as gin, vodka and rum; liqueurs such as amaretto, Tia Maria and Chartreuse; wine, champagne and fortified wines; beer and cider; and syrups, coffee and chocolate. It includes classic cocktails going back to the America of the 19th century, drinks from the great jazz era of the 1920s, famous blends that were revived in the 1980s, and the brand-new beverages being drunk in the trendsetting bars of today. Every drink you've ever wanted to try is in this exciting volume.

A rich romp through untold American history featuring fabulous characters, "The Wild Vine" is the tale of a little-known American grape that rocked the fine-wine world of the nineteenth century and is poised to do so again today.

Author Todd Kliman sets out on an epic quest to unravel the mystery behind Norton, a grape used to make a Missouri wine that claimed a prestigious gold medal at an international exhibition in Vienna in 1873. At a time when the vineyards of France were being ravaged by phylloxera, this grape seemed to promise a bright future for a truly American brand of wine-making, earthy and wild. And then Norton all but vanished. What happened?
The narrative begins more than a hundred years before California wines were thought to have put America on the map as a wine-making nation and weaves together the lives of a fascinating cast of renegades. We encounter the suicidal Dr. Daniel Norton, tinkering in his experimental garden in 1820s Richmond, Virginia. Half on purpose and half by chance, he creates a hybrid grape that can withstand the harsh New World climate and produce good, drinkable wine, thus succeeding where so many others had failed so fantastically before, from the Jamestown colonists to Thomas Jefferson himself. Thanks to an influential Long Island, New York, seed catalog, the grape moves west, where it is picked up in Missouri by German immigrants who craft the historic 1873 bottling. Prohibition sees these vineyards burned to the ground by government order, but bootleggers keep the grape alive in hidden backwoods plots. Generations later, retired Air Force pilot Dennis Horton, who grew up playing in the abandoned wine caves of the very winery that produced the 1873 Norton, brings cuttings of the grape back home to Virginia. Here, dot-com-millionaire-turned-vintner Jenni McCloud, on an improbable journey of her own, becomes Norton's ultimate champion, deciding, against all odds, to stake her entire reputation on the outsider grape.
Brilliant and provocative, "The Wild Vine" shares with readers a great American secret, resuscitating the Norton grape and its elusive, inky drink and forever changing the way we look at wine, America, and long-cherished notions of identity and reinvention.

"From the Hardcover edition."

Home winemaking is an appealing hobby for a new generation of wine lovers lured by the promise of a great payoff - small batches of handmade wine. It's the perfect opportunity to experiment with flavours, have fun playing with chemistry, and share a few tasty bottles with friends and family. But safely fermenting, bottling, and aging wine is a demanding process requiring special equipment, impeccable sanitation, an understanding of chemical reactions, and the patience to see the aging process through to the end. No matter how experienced the home winemaker, unforeseen questions develop with every batch of new wine. When a winemaker has problems with leaky corks or finds an oily film on top of his fermenting wine, what's the simplest, quickest way to get an answer? "The Wine Maker's Answer Book" is a 24 hour helpline with advice on hundreds of wine-making dilemmas. From the basic curiosity of the novice (What equipment will I need to get started?) to the finer points of fermentation (What is the impact of malolactic fermentation on acidity?), every step of the process is covered in detail. Author Alison Crowe uses a friendly question-and-answer format to explain the mysteries of turning grape juice into wine, whether the reader is beginning with fresh grapes or a home wine-making kit. To the straightforward requests for information, she offers detailed descriptions of procedures and equipment. For stickier real-life problems, she first carefully assesses the possible causes and then gives expert advice on fixing the trouble.

Home brewing and wine-making is fun, easy and hugely satisfying. If you garden or forage, can follow a recipe or make jam, and you enjoy a drink, this is the book for you. Andy's no-nonsense, easy-to-follow guide will enable the beginner and inspire the expert with over 100 recipes including beer made from hops and but also yarrow, mugwort, elder and other foraged plants, great tasting wines from fruit, vegetables and the hedgerows, cider and perry from apples and pears, cordials from the leaves of a range of trees, and teas and fizzy drinks from herbs and wayside flowers. - Discover the secret language of home brewing and drinks making. - Make cheap, wholesome drinks, to your preferred taste and strength in little time, with minimum fuss and no need for expensive equipment. - Turn your garden into a drinkers' paradise. - Find where and how to forage for success. - Impress your friends with the weird, wonderful and just plain tasty. Try Carrot Whisky, Sloe and Damson Rum, Parsnip Sherry, Elderberry and Blackberry Wine, Pumpkin Beer, Broom Tonic, Meadowsweet tea as well as classics such as Elderflower champagne, sloe gin, prison brew... Cheers!

Tea is arguably the most popular beverage in the world, but there s more to know beyond the colorful boxes sold at your local grocery store. Like wine and beer, each tea variety has its own distinct history, source, and flavor profile, from Darjeeling to matcha to Silver Needle. Tea is also embedded in the traditions of many cultures around the world and is shared with others through distinctive ceremonies that include unique customs, foods, and accessories. Within the pages of this pocket-sized guide, you ll find information, how-tos, and trivia for tea lovers of all levels. Experts and newbies alike will learn about: Tea Bags vs. Loose Leaf How to Prepare Tea Tea Families and Common Varieties Tea Traditions around the World How to Host an Afternoon Tea for Adults How to Throw a Tea Party for Children And more! Series Overview: Each volume in the Stuff series tells you everything you should know to navigate life s key topics, trends, and milestones. From telling jokes, cooking vegetarian, or tending a garden to getting through college, planning a wedding, or becoming a grandparent, you ll find all the answers in this concise but comprehensive pocket-sized package.

In the twelfth century the abbots of Burton began to produce beer. The dissolution of the abbey in the sixteenth century saw inns and alehouses appear, with many selling beer brewed on-site. The first recognisable brewery was Benjamin Printon's, which was established on Horninglow Street around 1708. The Trent & Mersey Canal, built in 1774/75, allowed further expansion to the industry, but it was the coming of the railway in 1839 that led to massive growth - by 1888 there were thirty-one breweries employing over 8,000 men and producing over 3 million barrels a year. In this collection of images, local author and historian Terry Garner illustrates the history of this famous east Staffordshire town and provides a fascinating insight into the many lost breweries that made Burton-on-Trent the brewing capital of the world.

Beverages provides thorough and integrated coverage in a user-friendly way, and is the second of an important series dealing with major food product groups. It is an invaluable learning and teaching aid and is also of great use to the food industry and regulatory personnel.

Real ale and other craft beers have become increasingly popular over the past few years, and as a result more people have been compelled to try making their own homebrew. However, while the concept behind making beer is simple, the execution can at times seem complex and confusing. The key to bridging the gap between brewing in theory and practise is being able to spot the signs of trouble and know how to respond. CAMRA's Home-Brewing Problem Solver provides the information you need to nip problems in the bud - and, better still, to avoid them in the first place.

'The Ultimate G&T' -- Jamie Oliver 'The best tonic on the planet' -- Ashton Kutcher The first cocktail book to put the mixers centre-stage, from brilliant Fever-Tree brand and created by leading bartenders around the world. Rather than starting with the spirits, this book focuses on key mixers - including tonic, lemonade, ginger ale, ginger beer and cola. Leading bartenders have created 125 classic and contemporary cocktail recipes that make the most of the botanical partnerships. The book also explores the origins of key ingredients, including quinine, lemons and elderflower, revealing the role quinine has played in geo-politics, for example, and the impact different herbs have on taste. In the way that we increasingly want to know the source and production methods of the food we eat, so this guide allows you to understand more fully what we drink - and use that knowledge to create the most delicious cocktails.

Oz uses his trademark wit and irreverent style to teach you the basics of wine appreciation and show you how to get more out of a bottle of wine, and find out what is really inside. Have you ever gone into your local wine shop or looked at the wine list in your local bar and thought with a sense of panic `Help, what do I choose?'... What sort of wine do I fancy today? A refreshing white? A summery red to take on a picnic or a spicy wine to go with a winter's stew?' Well, Oz is here to help. Split into sections covering basics (wine at a glance, good grape guide, wine styles, from grape to glass and quick guide to countries); practical stuff (what the label tells you, the canny wine buyer, essential kit, serving and keeping wine); and becoming a wine geek (tasting wine, starting your own collection, finding out more and quick guide to names in wine). Oz will be your guide through the world of fascinating flavours and help you find the sort of wine you enjoy drinking. Dip into this book and you will find a quick, accessible guide to wine styles: what is warm and spicy or chewy and blackcurranty? He recommends wines to try; and explains what the label tells you about the taste and quality of the wine and whether it is any good or not. Soon you will be confident enough to choose between flavoursome reds such as Shiraz or Pinot Noir, and refreshing whites from Alberino to Sauvignon Blanc. The book is divided into short, easy to read topics, with recommended wines to try covering all styles and flavours. Now is the moment to grab that glass, learn about what is inside that bottle and taste while you read...