Whether as wine, beer, or spirits, alcohol has had a constant and often controversial role in social life. In his innovative book on the attitudes toward and consumption of alcohol, Rod Phillips surveys a 9,000-year cultural and economic history, uncovering the tensions between alcoholic drinks as healthy staples of daily diets and as objects of social, political, and religious anxiety. In the urban centers of Europe and America, where it was seen as healthier than untreated water, alcohol gained a foothold as the drink of choice, but it has been more regulated by governmental and religious authorities more than any other commodity. As a potential source of social disruption, alcohol created volatile boundaries of acceptable and unacceptable consumption and broke through barriers of class, race, and gender. Phillips follows the ever-changing cultural meanings of these potent potables and makes the surprising argument that some societies have entered ""post-alcohol"" phases. His is the first book to examine and explain the meanings and effects of alcohol in such depth, from global and long-term perspectives.

Discover your new favourite wines, beers, spirits and cocktails in this unique and ingenious guide, led by your own taste buds 'All about the pleasures of raising a glass. This book tells you what to try next and why . . . Cheers!' Michel Roux Jr 'A kind of Flavour Thesaurus but for drinks. A joyful, thoughtful labyrinth in which you can happily lose yourself for hours' Daily Telegraph **Finalist in the Guild of Food Writers Award for Drinks Book of the Year** ________ Do you always ask for the same old wine, the usual pint, the reliable spirit? It's all too easy to play it safe, and finding new favourites can take time and effort. Until now. Using the algorithm 'If you like this, you'll love that', this ingenious guide will lead you by your taste buds, using your existing favourite drinks and flavours to reveal vast varieties that will also suit your palate. Fan of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc? Try Sancerre for similar grassy notes. Partial to Vintage Champagne? Believe it or not, you may also like a Brown Porter. Those who enjoy Scotch Single Malt Whisky should give a Californian Pinot Noir a go, while a preference for Pornstar Martinis suggests you'll also be fond of Japanese Sake. Exploring the gamut of flavour styles, from floral and fruity to smoky and spicy, then showcasing all the drinks in which you can find them, from wine, beer, cider, tequila and vodka through to tea, coffee, mixers and everything in between There's a whole universe of incredible wine, beer, spirits and cocktails just waiting to be discovered and enjoyed - if only we can step outside that comfort zone. This book will show you how. ________ 'Rob Buckhaven will help you discover your new favourite tipple . . . He knows his stuff and his enthusiasm is infectious' Sunday Express

The perfect way to spend an afternoon! When the occasion calls for a drink, but not getting drunk, mix up a batch of day drinks - creative, low-alcohol cocktails that are festive, delicious, and easy on the booze. Using beer, wine, cider, sake, sherry, and vermouth, plus a variety of amari and other liqueurs, here are 50 light drinks for hot days, warm drinks for cool days, and an abundance of classic - and reimagined - spritzers, sangrias, micheladas, and so much more.

What is taste? Is it individual or imposed on us from the outside? Why are so many of us so intimidated when presented with the wine list at a restaurant? In "The Accidental Connoisseur," journalist Lawrence Osborne takes off on a personal voyage through a little-known world in pursuit of some answers. Weaving together a fantastic cast of eccentrics and obsessives, industry magnates and small farmers, the author explores the way technological change, opinionated critics, consumer trends, wheelers and dealers, trade wars, and mass market tastes have made the elixir we drink today entirely different from the wine drunk by our grandparents.
In his search for wine that is a true expression of the place that produced it, Osborne takes the reader from the high-tech present to the primitive past. From a lavish lunch with wine tsar Robert Mondavi to the cellars of Marquis Piero Antinori in Florence, from the tasting rooms of Chateau Lafite to the humble vineyards of northern Lazio, Osborne winds his way through Renaissance palaces, $27 million wineries, tin shacks and garages, opulent restaurants, world-famous chais and vineyards, renowned villages and obscure landscapes, as well as the great cities which are the temples of wine consumption: New York, San Francisco, Paris, Florence, and Rome. On the way, we will be shown the vast tapestry of this much-desired, little-understood drink: who produces it and why, who consumes it, who critiques it? Enchanting, delightful, entertaining, and, above all, down to earth, this is a wine book like no other.