Category: Beer Books

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Garage Art

One of the reliably long lined station at FWIBF is that of Garage Project and one reason is their creativity. That will be showcased in a new book coming mid-year called The Art of Beer. According to the brewery it has “Over 100 beers and their art are collected in this book. Here are original sketches and finished art for the beers you love to love, from Pils’n’Thrills to Aro Noir to BEER beer, with insights into the creative process and talented people who made them – and the stories and inspiration behind the brewery and the beers…”

Could be a great Christmas present for the beer fan on your list.

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Drink Better (in September)

Here is your heads up for a new beer book coming in September from Joshua Bernstein. Here is the blurb: “Drink Better Beer features the must-know insights of more than 30 professionals, including competition judges, beer consultants, and master brewers. Find out how to shop clever by heeding two simple rules. Learn the art of selecting the right glass, cleaning it, and executing the perfect pour. Make sense of all those aromas with just a couple of sniffing tricks. Unlock the taste secrets of different styles, learn when to drink and how to know if your favorite beer store is treating their beer the way they should.”

Bernstein’s IPA book and Complete Book Course didn’t quite do the trick for me though I found fun beer knowledge in both, so I hope this book has more.

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The New IPA Science

Considering how hop crazy us craft beer geeks are, it is amazing that there is so much still to learn about that magic little hop. That knowledge gap will shrink with this new book from Scott Janish. I am recommending based only on the fact of who wrote the foreword.

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A Book & A Beer – Best American Mystery Stories 2018

Count me as a huge short story fan. I gobbled up any Stephen King collection that I could find and when I saw the Mystery Edition of 2018. I snapped it up.

There are good, bad and ugly in any collection but this one had a higher fun ratio than most. I really like “Y is for Yangchuan Lizard” was both funny but stuck the landing with the bad girlfriend twist. I was excited to see a T.C. Boyle story but it was a superficial and weirdly not aged well elder theft story. Another top 3 story was Smoked which combined BBQ and the witness protection program and a long range shooter you don’t see coming.

There was a Jack Reacher story which was solid and movie like. You can easily tell why the character resonates. It was good to see an old Western included and not good to see ye’ Olde Jack the Ripper trotted out again.

Probably my favorite was a piece entitled Windward. About a missing 3rd wife to a hotshot film producer. It had good PI language and a fun Venice setting.

For the beers, I am going to say that you look for really sessionable beers. Dark English milds would be good, maybe a dry hopped lighter lager. Since the stories are shorter the ABV should be lower. A German Helles might do the trick since some of these characters are probably bound for the hotter place.


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A Natural History of Beer

This beer book came out at the end of February and totally slipped by me (for a while), A Natural History of Beer is a reach into the past from authors Rob DeSalle and Ian Tattersall who probably had no end of stories to choose from in beers past.  What I find interesting and what might make this book a cool addition to your brew library is that both authors have held a curator post.  Which I think will lead to excellent choices as to what is written about.

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A Book & A Beer – The Milkman

The Milkman was passed down from my Man Booker Prize fan (and beer fan) Rich. This book requires getting into a reading rhythm. It is a little stream of conscious, lots of tangents and backtracking and the there are no names. Just Maybe Boyfriend, Ma and, of course, Milkman.

But when you get going you start to feel for the protagonist. She is trying, at a young age, to navigate minefields of social convention, war and duplicity and hormones and parents. And she doesn’t hesitate to think back on actions and words as wrong at the moment and wish she had done different. You really begin to root for her to succeed in life and to find the more that she wants instead of the life being laid out in this Irish town.

To drink with this book, I would try to find a brewery with a Pink Boots collaborative beer on tap or in cans (Pizza Port has one). Almost as hard to find would be a Dry Irish Stout but that would set the mood as well. Or you could encourage the wild and crazy and have a lactose-y Milkshake IPA to nod at the Milkman of the title.

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Pellicle

Scrolling through the nicer part of Twitter Town, I ran across this announcement from beer writer Matthew Curtis… “We’re a brand new magazine celebrating beer, wine, cider, food and travel. Launching online May the 1st.” This is a UK centered venture but hopefully we in the States will be able to at least read some of the content online or order a subscription.

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Book Review – Movers & Shakers by Hope Ewing

First off, great title. Movers and Shakers is perfect and I looked forward to reading this book by Hope Ewing. And I was not disappointed. Ewing gives brief bios to women in wine, beer and spirits from a variety of backgrounds. The tone is conversational and she is able to interject her own feelings into that conversation so that you get to know her as well throughout the book.

Obviously, I veered to the beer section and was glad to see that the Pink Boots Society got major props. This group is a template, in my opinion, of how a group can uplift and create a positive impact for the future.

I expected a certain amount of horror stories but the book tacks into a different direction. It doesn’t shy away from the toxic environments that men create. The Portland bar scene gets walloped for it in particular but #MeToo is saved for the end and though it is a down note for a positive book, I am glad that Ewing put that essay in because it is strong and practically begs for a sequel in a few years time.

And I suggest that men who profess to be part of the Asshole Free Beer community, really read this book and see how they stack up. I certainly will be re-assessing my role.

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A Book & A Beer – The Traveling Cat Chronicles

The book for March is all about cats and saying goodbye. The Traveling Cat Chronicles is a simple and effective tearjerker that alternates between the point of view of the cat owner, Satoru and the Cat, Nana. Named after the # 7 which the cat’s tail resembles.

The book is divided into trips that the owner takes to find a new home for his cat that he rescued from the streets. Each trip brings up memories from when Satoru was younger and when he met the people for the first time that shaped his life. Each trip ends up with Nana getting back into the van with Satoru due to some good/bad reason that the cat would not like it there.

It doesn’t take long to figure out that the owner is dying and that he needs to get this done before he dies but he also doesn’t want to let go for fear of not having the cat to stay alive for. It is blatant with its affections and wears the emotion on the sleeves of everyone in the book but by the end it works. Maybe not because of the book itself but because having and giving away a pet is such an emotional tie.

The first beer choice is from Baird Beer. Kurofune Porter has a bittersweet taste of chocolate and malt that matches the tears you will spill. If you are into trading SingleCut from New York has 本から来たネコ (some cat from japan) IPA. Or my last choice is the La Roja from Jolly Pumpkin that has a swashbuckling cat on the label.