A tour of Scottish distilleries explores the history, personality and mystery of the water of life.As a native of Scotland, bestselling author Ian Banks has decided to undertake a tour of the distilleries of his homeland in a bid to uncover the unique spirit of the single malt.Visiting world-famous distilleries and also the small and obscure ones, Iain Banks embarks on a journey of discovery which educates him about the places, people and products surrounding the centuries-old tradition of whisky production.Using various modes of transport -- island ferries, cars across the highlands and even bicycles -- Banks’ tour of Scotland combines history, literature and landscape in an entertaining and informative account of an exploration in which the arrival is by no means the most important part of the journey.

    Everyone -- from lowly criminals to upstanding citizens -- saw in Prohibition an unparalleled license to get rich. Here is the full story of those thirteen years of temperance, telling how and why it all happened. It takes us back to the "beautiful and the damned", who drank their lives away in speakeasies; to the St. Valentine's Day massacre and the bootleggers and gangsters; to the head of a Kansas City sewing circle who single-handedly axed a saloon to splinters; to teetotaler Henry Ford's Detroit, where workers' homes were searched to make sure they were dry.

    Throughout history, it has been consumed not just to quench our thirsts or nourish our bodies but also for cultural reasons. It has been associated since antiquity with celebration, creativity, friendship, and danger, for every drinking culture has acknowledged it possesses a dark side. In Drink, Iain Gately traces the course of humanity's 10,000 year old love affair with the substance which has been dubbed the cause of - and solution to - all of life's problems. Along the way he scrutinises the drinking habits of presidents, prophets, and barbarian hordes, and features drinkers as diverse as Homer, Hemmingway, Shakespeare, Al Capone, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson. Covering matters as varied as bacchanals in Imperial Rome, the gin craze in 17th century London, the rise and fall of the temperance movement, and drunk driving, Drink details the benefits and burdens alcohol has conveyed to the societies in which it is consumed. Gately's lively and provocative style brings to life the controversies, past and present, that have raged over alcohol, and uses the authentic voices of drinkers and their detractors to explode myths and reveal truths about this most equivocal of fluids.Drink further documents the contribution of alcohol to the birth and growth of the United States, taking in the war of Independence, the Pennsylvania Whiskey revolt, the slave trade, and the failed experiment of National Prohibition. Finally, it provides a history of the world's best loved drinks. Enthusiasts of craft brews and fine wines will discover the origins of their favorite tipples, and what they have in common with Greek philosophers and medieval princes every time they raise a glass.A rollicking tour through humanity's love affair with alcohol, Drink is an intoxicating history of civilization

    In McCarthy's Bar, his journey begins in Cork and continues along the west coast to Donegal in the north. Traveling through spectacular landscapes, but at all times obeying the rule, "never pass a bar that has your name on it," he encounters McCarthy's bars up and down the land, meeting fascinating people before pleading to be let out at four o'clock in the morning.Written by someone who is at once an insider and an outside, McCarthy's Bar is a wonderfully funny and affectionate portrait of a rapidly changing country.

    Yet it's really the most complex and subtle. Taste is a whole-body experience, and breakthroughs in genetics and microbiology are casting light not just on the experience of french fries and foie gras, but the mysterious interplay of body and brain.With reporting from kitchens, supermarkets, farms, restaurants, huge food corporations, and science labs, Tasty tells the story of the still-emerging concept of flavor and how our sense of taste will evolve in the coming decades. Tasty explains the scientific research taking place on multiple fronts: how genes shape our tastes; how hidden taste perceptions weave their way into every organ and system in the body; how the mind assembles flavors from the five senses and signals from body's metabolic systems; the quest to understand why sweetness tastes good and its dangerous addictive properties; why something disgusts one person and delights another; and what today's obsessions with extreme tastes tell us about the brain.Brilliantly synthesizing science, ancient myth, philosophy, and literature, Tasty offers a delicious smorgasbord of where taste originated and where it's going—and why it changes by the day.

    The seamless and seemingly effortless blend of action and humour, the wonderful characters, the rich settings, the brilliant plot - all of it is perfect' James P. Blaylock

    Interwoven through these different narrative strands comes the story of the whiskies themselves, traced from a distant past of bothies and illegal stills to present-day legality and prosperity. The flavour of each spirit is analysed and the differences between them teased out, as are the stories of the notable men and women who have played such a integral part in their creation.PEAT SMOKE AND SPIRIT is the last word on Islay and its whiskies.

    Along the way though I developed my own style. I boiled down what I learned and moved it indoors. I've developed designs that can be used right in the comfort of you own kitchen or out back in the woods! The truth is that Moonshining, aka "Home Distilling" is a folk art that helped build this country. Together we can make it live again, and have a little fun in the process! "But isn't this dangerous" you ask. Cooking up spirits isn't any harder then properly roasting a Thanksgiving turkey. In fact it's so easy that a redneck like me can do it. And folks if I can do it, then imagine what you might be able to create! Imagine the holidays when you pull out your own special label. Think of the drinks and dishes you can concoct. Open up a whole new world of creativity and step into the hobby that is truly one of the founding traditions of our country. There are dozens of reasons why people look into home distilling. Maybe you are looking for a new culinary branch to explore, maybe you just like the idea of knowing how to do things for yourself, perhaps you just like to keep the old ways alive or maybe you are just tired of our government telling us what we can and can not do! In this book I will show you how easy and safe this hobby really is. This book is designed for the beginner distiller and I take the time to introduce you to all the concepts of distilling that you need to get started. One of the great thing about distilling is that you can keep it simple or as get as complicated as you could possible want. This journey is all about where you want to take it. Please be advised that this is for informational purposes only. After you read this you will understand just how easy it is to make your own Moonshine, Whiskey, Vodka, Rum or even alternative fuels. Then once you understand how easy this is, how safe and how stupid the laws that restrict this are, then you can contact your congressman and/or senator and tell them to repeal the laws that are only in place to protect big businesses. Believe it or not there are Moonshiners everywhere, we have a grand tradition that goes back to the first settlers. Many historians will even tell you that it was moonshine that built this country! It's time to take back our heritage. Thank you for your support! Jeff King Moonshiners Unite!

    Reich, former Secretary of Labor and author of Beyond Outrage).“The essential handbook for thinking and talking Democratic—must reading not only for every Democrat but for every responsible citizen” (Robert B. Reich, former Secretary of Labor and author of Beyond Outrage). Voters cast their ballots for what they believe is right, for the things that make moral sense. Yet Democrats have too often failed to use language linking their moral values with their policies. The Little Blue Book demonstrates how to make that connection clearly and forcefully, with hands-on advice for discussing the most pressing issues of our time: the economy, health care, women’s issues, energy and environmental policy, education, food policy, and more. Dissecting the ways that extreme conservative positions have permeated political discourse, Lakoff and Wehling show how to fight back on moral grounds and in concrete terms. Revelatory, passionate, and deeply practical, The Little Blue Book will forever alter the way Democrats and progressives think and talk about politics.

    When Andrew Jackson planned his defense of New Orleans against the British in 1815, he met Jean Lafitte in a grog shop. And when John Wilkes Booth plotted with his accomplices to carry out an assassination, they gathered in Surratt Tavern.In America Walks into a Bar, Christine Sismondo recounts the rich and fascinating history of an institution often reviled, yet always central to American life. She traces the tavern from England to New England, showing how even the Puritans valued a good Beere. With fast-paced narration and lively characters, she carries the story through the twentieth century and beyond, from repeated struggles over licensing and Sunday liquor sales, from the Whiskey Rebellion to the temperance movement, from attempts to ban treating to Prohibition and repeal. As the cockpit of organized crime, politics, and everyday social life, the bar has remained vital--and controversial--down to the present. In 2006, when the Hurricane Katrina Emergency Tax Relief Act was passed, a rider excluded bars from applying for aid or tax breaks on the grounds that they contributed nothing to the community. Sismondo proves otherwise: the bar has contributed everything to the American story.Now in paperback, Sismondo's heady cocktail of agile prose and telling anecdotes offers a resounding toast to taprooms, taverns, saloons, speakeasies, and the local hangout where everybody knows your name.

    Make your own brew at home!”If you’re going to invest the $100 or so to get a basic equipment and recipe kit, then you’ll want to take care in ensuring that your first batch is brewed correctly.” –Rick Morris, HowBrewBeer The Joy of Home Distilling is covers nearly every facet of distilling: Step-by-step instructions for the different processes, from bucket to bottle The difference between spirit types and how to produce each What yeast is, what it does, and how to ensure that you get a strong, complete fermentation What distillation is and common misconceptions about the process Legalities surrounding distilling alcohol at home Carbon filtering—when it’s necessary, when to filter, and why you filter Flavoring and aging your spirits Keeping safety first when working with flammable materials, such as ethanol Yeast styles and nutritional requirements Different methods of distillation and equipment Post-distillation process And of course, fun drink recipes! (Try the Mudslide or the Cherry Bomb!)Author Rick Morris, who has been selling distillation equipment for over 25 years, even includes his own recipes for different types of spirits and drink recipes. By learning not just how to distill, but also what is happening at each step and why it is needed, readers will be armed with the information they need to experiment with their own spirits and concoct their own recipes. Easy to understand even for a first-time distiller, The Joy of Home Distilling is sure to become your number one distilling resource.

    Because of a need to better understand Catholic philosophical thought, especially in the context of its historical development and realizing that philosophers interact within particular social and cultural situations, MacIntyre offers this brief history of Catholic philosophy. Tracing the idea of God through different philosophers' engagement of God and how this engagement has played out in universities, MacIntyre provides a valuable, lively, and insightful study of the disintegration of academic disciplines with knowledge. MacIntyre then demonstrates the dangerous implications of this happening and how universities can and ought to renew a shared understanding of knowledge in their mission. This engaging work will be a benefit and a delight to all readers.

    F. K. Fisher’s life in California, Provence, Mexico and Switzerland. These engaging recipes, "a perfect combination of superstition, instinct, and primitive knowledge" deal with commonplace ailments—sore throats, cures for cats, aging skin, fevers, PMS and hangovers. Ingredients of these extraordinary receipts are transformed into cures and preventatives told in the inimitable style of this master of the finely observed life.

    The first literary biography of Edward Abbey in a generation, this thoughtful memoir serves as a meditation on the writing life, the cult of readers, reputation, and the literary afterlife of a well-known writer.

    This complete guide, from the proprietors of Kombucha Kamp, shows you how to do it from start to finish, with illustrated step-by-step instructions and troubleshooting tips. The book also includes information on the many health benefits of kombucha, fascinating details of the drink’s history, and recipes for delicious foods and drinks you can make with kombucha (including some irresistible cocktails!). “This is the one go-to resource for all things kombucha.” — Andrew Zimmern, James Beard Award–winning author and host of Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods