Shortlisted for the 2017 Andre Simon Food and Drink Book Awards Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink on the planet, but few who enjoy it know much about how its four ingredients - malted barley, hops, yeast and water - miraculously combine. We've been brewing and drinking beer for thousands of years, without understanding how or why the brewing process works. In the Middle Ages, yeast was called `godisgoode' because no one had any idea what fermentation was. Malting barley, too, has for centuries seemed genuinely wondrous: it's only in the last 200 years that science has identified and understood how man and yeast work together to gently (or not so gently) persuade this humble grain to give up its sugary stash for fermentation into beer. From the birth of brewing (and civilization) in the Middle East, through an exploration of water's unmurky depths and the surreal madness of drink-sodden hop-blessings in the Czech Republic, to the stunning recreation of the first ever modern beer - Miracle Brew is an extraordinary journey through the nature and science of brewing. Along the way, we'll meet and drink with a cast of characters who reveal the magic of beer and celebrate the joy of drinking it. And, almost without noticing, we'll learn the naked truth about the world's greatest beverage.

The untold story of a British institution ‘Brilliant.’ Alan Johnson ‘Compelling.’ David Kynaston ‘The beer drinkers’ Bill Bryson.’ Times Literary Supplement Ferment Magazine’s Best Beer Book of the Year Pete Brown is a convivial guide on this journey through the intoxicating history of the working men’s clubs. From the movement’s founding by teetotaller social reformer the Reverend Henry Solly to the booze-soaked mid-century heyday, when more than 7 million Brits were members, this warm-hearted and entertaining book reveals how and why the clubs became the cornerstone of Britain’s social life – offering much more than cheap Federation Bitter and chicken in a basket. Often dismissed as relics of a bygone age – bastions of bigotry and racism – Brown reminds us that long before the days of Phoenix Nights, 3,000-seat venues routinely played host to stars like Shirley Bassey, Louis Armstrong, and the Bee Gees, offering entertainment for all the family, and close to home at that. Britain’s best-known comedians made reputations through a thick miasma of smoke, from Sunniside to Skegness. For a young man growing up in the pit town of Barnsley this was a radiant wonderland that transformed those who entered. Brown explores the clubs’ role in defining masculinity, community and class identity for generations of men in Britain’s industrial towns. They were, at their best, a vehicle for social mobility and self-improvement, run as cooperatives for working people by working people: an informal, community-owned pre-cursor to the Welfare State. As the movement approaches its 160th anniversary, this exuberant book brings to life the thrills and the spills of a cultural phenomenon that might still be rescued from irrelevance.

WINNER OF THE DRINK BOOK AWARD AT THE FORTNUM & MASON FOOD AND DRINK AWARDS 2017. Pete Brown has visited hundreds of pubs across the UK and is uniquely placed to write about pubs that ooze atmosphere, whatever the reason, be it food, people, architecture, location or decor. The best pubs are those that always have a steady trade at any time on any day of the week, and where chat flows back and forth across the bar. They're the places where you want to drink weak beer so you can have several pints and stay longer. Some are grand Victorian palaces, others ancient inns with stunning views across the hills. Some are ale shrines, others gastropubs (though they probably don't call themselves that any more). A precious few are uniquely eccentric, the kinds of places that are just as likely to have terrible reviews on Trip Advisor as great ones, because some people don't realize that the outside toilets, limp sandwiches on the bar and really disturbing full-size mannequin glaring at you from the corner are all part of the charm. This charming collection of 300 pubs explores what makes each one ooze atmosphere, be it food, people, architecture, location or decor, and looks at the quirks of local history as well as different trends and types of pub. Full of pen portraits of punters or publicans, legends, yarns and myths, this entertaining book is the perfect gift for regulars of that well-loved British institution, the pub.

This series is for the Cambridge International AS History syllabus (9489) for examination from 2021. Written by an experienced author team that includes examiners, a practising teacher and trainers, this coursebook supports the Cambridge International AS History syllabus. With increased depth of coverage, this coursebook helps build confidence and understanding in language, essay-writing and evaluation skills. The coursebook also develops students' conceptual understanding of history with the five new 'Key concepts'. In addition, it encourages individuals to make substantiated judgments and reflect on their own learning. Students can also consolidate their skills though exam-style questions with source material and sample responses.

Pete Brown takes us on a well-lubricated pub-crawl through the story of beer, from the first sacred sip of ancient Egyptian "bouza" to the last pint of lager on a Friday night. It is a tale of yeast-obsessed monks and teetotal prime ministers of how pale ale fuelled an empire and weak bitter won a world war of exploding breweries, a bear in a yellow nylon jacket and a Canadian bloke who changed the drinking habits of a nation. It is also the story of the rise of the pub from humble origins through an epic, 1000-year struggle to survive misunderstanding, bad government and misguided commerce.

The original India Pale Ale was pure gold in a glass; a semi-mythical beer specially invented, in the 19th century, to travel halfway around the world, through storms and tropical sunshine, and arrive in perfect condition for a long, cold drink on an Indian verandah. But although you can still buy beers with 'IPA' on the label they are, to be frank, a pale imitation of the original. For the first time in 140 years, a keg of Burton IPA has been brewed with the original recipe for a voyage to India by canal and tall ship, around the Cape of Good Hope; and the man carrying it is the award-winning Pete Brown, Britain's best beer write. Brazilian pirates and Iranian customs officials lie ahead, but will he even make it that far, have fallen in the canal just a few miles out of Burton? And if Pete does make it to the other side of the world with 'Barry' the barrel, one question remains: what will the real IPA taste like? Weaving first-class travel writing with assured comedy, Hops and Glory is both a rollicking, raucous history of the Raj and a wonderfully entertaining, groundbreaking experiment to recreate the finest beer ever produced.

Welcome to the George Inn near London Bridge; a cosy, wood-pannelled, galleried coaching house a few minutes' walk from the Thames. Grab yourself a pint, listen to the chatter of the locals and lean back, resting your head against the wall. And then consider this: who else has rested their head against that wall, over the last 600 years? Chaucer and his fellow pilgrims almost certainly drank in the George on their way out of London to Canterbury. It's fair to say that Shakespeare will have popped in from the nearby Globe for a pint, and we know that Dickens certainly did. Mail carriers changed their horses here, before heading to all four corners of Britain -- while sailors drank here before visiting all four corners of the world... The pub, as Pete Brown points out, is the 'primordial cell of British life' and in the George he has found the perfect case study. All life is here, from murderers, highwaymen and ladies of the night to gossiping pedlars and hard-working clerks. So sit back and watch as buildings rise and fall over the centuries, and 'the beer drinker's Bill Bryson' (TLS) takes us on an entertaining tour through six centuries of history, through the stories of everyone that ever drank in one pub.

Today in Britain there are over 2500 breweries, most of whom brew an ever-changing range of different beers. On the bar of any decent pub, or shelves of a good bottle shop or supermarket beer aisle, the choice can be overwhelming. People make snap decisions so quickly we don't even notice. And the design of a beer label, pump clip, bottle or can has to do a lot of work to stand out, get noticed, and suggest to the thirsty punter that here is a beer they will enjoy.

'Funny, informative, a love poem to all that's great in British cooking ... from the humble cheese sandwich, through fish and chips and curry, to the ubiquitous Sunday roast ... Part Nigel Slater, part Bill Bryson, and wholly delicious' Michael Simkins, Mail on Sunday A journey through British food, from the acclaimed author of The Apple Orchard In Britain, we have always had an awkward relationship with food. We've been told for so long that we are terrible cooks and yet when someone with a clipboard asks us what the best things are about being British, our traditional food and drink are more important than the monarchy and at least as significant as our landscape and national monuments in defining a collective notion of who we are. Taking nine archetypically British dishes - Pie and Peas, A Cheese Sandwich, Fish and Chips, Spag Bol, Devonshire Cream Tea, Curry, The Full English, The Sunday Roast and a Crumble with Custard - and enjoying them in their most typical settings, Pete Brown examines just how fundamental food is to our sense of identity, perhaps even our sense of pride, and the ways in which we understand our place in the world.

'An absorbing love letter to the English apple tree...lyrical and joyful' - TLS 'A delightful book' - Sunday Times Shortlisted for the Andre Simon Food and Drink Book Award 2016 A Radio 4 Book of the Week 'Wonderful, revelatory ... very moving' - Sheila Dillon, BBC Radio 4 'His ability to laugh at himself, openness to wonder and willingness to go wherever the search takes him make Brown an engaging writer and The Apple Orchard an entertaining journey' - Mail on Sunday Taking us through the seasons in England's apple-growing heartlands, this magical book uncovers the stories and folklore of our most familiar fruit. 'An orchard is not a field. It's not a forest or a copse. It couldn't occur naturally; it's definitely cultivated. But an orchard doesn't override the natural order: it enhances it, dresses it up. It demonstrates that man and nature together can - just occasionally - create something more beautiful and (literally) more fruitful than either could alone. The vivid brightness of the laden trees, studded with jewels, stirs some deep race memory and makes the heart leap. Here is bounty, and excitement.'

Meet Pete Brown: beer jounalist, beer drinker and author of an irreverent book about British beer, Man Walks Into A Pub. One day, Pete's world is rocked when he discovers several countries produce, consume and celebrate beer far more than we do. The Germans claim they make the best beer in the world, the Australians consider its consumption a patriotic duty, the Spanish regard lager as a trendy youth drink and the Japanese have built a skyscrapter in the shape of a foaming glass of their favourite brew. At home, meanwhile, people seem to be turning their back on the great British pint. What's going on? Obviously, the only way to find out was to on the biggest pub crawl ever. Drinking in more than three hundred bars, in twenty-seven towns, in thirteen different countries, on four different continents, Pete puts on a stone in weight and does irrecoverable damage to his health in the pursuit of saloon-bar enlightenment. 'A fine book. . . the exact tone that a work on this social drug requires.' The Times 'Over 300 bars later and the man still manages to make you laugh.' Daily Mirror 'Carlsberg don't publish books. But if they did, they would probably come up with Three Sheets to the Wind...' Metro 'A marvellous book which is as enlightening about the countries he visited as any travel guide.' Adventure Magazine

Dean Cain stars in this family drama.

To fulfil his dream of running a ranch, Kent Walsh moves with his wife Teri and 14-year-old daughter Sarah to small-town Arizona. Struggling to make their dream come true and faced with a tough economy, the family's life changes further when they are joined by Kent's niece Summer Dean after her mother is arrested in New York.

Struggling to adapt to life outside of the city, the troubled teenager soon comes round to life on the ranch and finds a purpose in caring for the family's horses.

A history of Britain told through the story of one very special pub, from "The Beer Drinker's Bill Bryson" "(Times Literary Supplement)
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Welcome to the George Inn near London Bridge; a cosy, wood-paneled, galleried coaching house a few minutes' walk from the Thames. Grab yourself a pint, listen to the chatter of the locals and lean back, resting your head against the wall. And then consider this: who else has rested their head against that wall, over the last six hundred years?
Chaucer and his fellow pilgrims almost certainly drank in the George on their way out of London to Canterbury. It's fair to say that Shakespeare popped in from the nearby Globe for a pint, and we know that Dickens certainly did. Mail carriers changed their horses here, before heading to all four corners of Britain--while sailors drank here before visiting all four corners of the world.
The pub, as Pete Brown points out, is the 'primordial cell of British life' and in the George he has found the perfect example. All life is here, from murderers, highwaymen, and ladies of the night to gossiping peddlers and hard-working clerks. So sit back with "Shakespeare's Pub" and watch as buildings rise and fall over the centuries, and 'the beer drinker's Bill Bryson' (UK's "Times Literary Supplement") takes us on an entertaining tour through six centuries of history, through the stories of everyone that ever drank in one pub.

Set in a not-too-distant future after a second civil war in the US - where slavery has been reintroduced and any man can be taken into it, especially if they're prisoners of that war - the rich and powerful of the New South anoint their sons to help in government and the family businesses, which can seem one and the same. The story follows a years-long e-mail correspondence between one-time jerk-off buddies, Steve and Stu, who were best friends through the war and kept in contact even though Stu's straight and opposed to slavery. Steve's gay and his first job is to learn how to be a slave master, with all the rules, regulations and erotic decisions it entails.

When "Steve" woke up that morning, he was naked in a bed he'd never been in before. He couldn't remember where he was or what he'd done, but it didn't take him long to realize it was no more London, no more job, no more rugby matches, no more women and no more freedom to do as he damn well wanted. A big, buff, heterosexual guy used to living his own life, he'd been "taken" to fulfill an order by a "collector of beautiful young men" and would have to learn to do as he was ordered - or else...even if it meant allowing his new owner - or anyone of authority in the man's employ - to abuse him and use him in any way they want... and even if it meant he'd be used for sex. Imagine Steve's surprise as he found how easy it could be to adjust to "A Slave's Life."

Steve should have said "No" to Dave, that day he came up with his devil's offer. But Steve was so eager to get out of prison - get out from under a life sentence without the possibility of parole - he stupidly agreed to do whatever Dave wanted...not realizing what Dave wanted was to give him as a gift to the son of a Middle-Eastern Ruler. This would help make up for an unintended slight to the ruler and his son...maybe even help negotiate a new peace agreement which could then make Dave's rich and powerful backers even richer. But Steve was as straight as the day is long and had no intention of becoming a sexual plaything for another man. Problem is, Dave won't take "no" for an answer...and neither will his backers. So Steve either learns how to be this young man's "Toy" - or he ceases to exist.