Open the bottle on this comprehensive tasting course to discover the variety, complex history, and distinct flavors that rum has to offer. From its origins in the West Indies and its seafaring associations, rum is now distilled all over the world, and its popularity as a spirit is experiencing a new rise. Ian Burrell, a passionate advocate for all things rum, reveals the spirit’s long and complex history; the production, distillation, and aging process; and the myriad flavors of this delicious drink available today. Discover who we have to thank for inventing rum, exactly how it is created from sugarcane, and how best to enjoy the different varieties before exploring tasting notes for more than 100 global rums and recipes for more than 30 cocktails—both classic favorites and those with a modern twist. This all-encompassing guide to the ongoing story of rum will teach you to establish your own palate and write your own tasting notes and will open up the world of premium and bespoke spirits for a lifetime of enjoyment.

Enjoying Bourbon gives comprehensive, practical information while offering a working guide to the pleasures, flavor intricacies, and overall enjoyment of this evergreen and popular spirit.

Rum Curious takes the reader on a tour of the world of rum, teaching the reader how to taste rum and appreciate all its glorious variety.

The best - and most enjoyable - way to find out about whiskies is by drinking them. This truly hands-on handbook takes you on a tasting journey to discover your own personal whisky style, and helps you to expand your horizons so you can find a world of new whiskies to enjoy. Through a series of guided at-home tastings, you'll get familiar with the full spectrum of whisky aromas and flavours on offer - from the smoky tang of Islay peat to the aromatic scent of Japanese oak. Find out how to engage all your senses to navigate the range of malts, grains and blended whiskies and get to grips with different whisky styles. Take a tasting tour of the world's finest makers, including iconic Scottish distilleries and small-scale artisan producers all over the globe. And as you become more whisky-confident, you can break out of your whisky comfort zone. Do you love the honeyed sweetness of a Kentucky Bourbon? If so, why not try a smooth malt that's been aged in ex-Bourbon barrels? Or a creamy, oat-infused Irish craft whiskey? Guides to whisky prices and ages will help you to make smart buys. Discover how to pour, store and serve whiskies and match them with foods. Learn to mix cocktails, from a classic whiskey sour to your own signature creation. With 20 step-by-step whisky tastings, clear infographics and jargon-busting advice - taste your way to whisky wisdom.

A must-read for aspiring connoisseurs, and a thorough refresher for seasoned whisky lovers.”—Whiskey Advocate Winner of the Gourmand Award in the Drink Education category (US). The definitive book on understanding and appreciating the exploding world of whiskey. Renowned whiskey educator Robin Robinson demystifies the “water of life” in a definitive, heavily illustrated tome designed to take readers on a global tour of the ever-expanding world of whiskey. Across ten robust “classes,” Robinson explains whiskey history, how it defined the way whiskey is made in different countries and regions, the myriad styles, how aging and finishing works, and the basics of “nosing” and tasting whiskey. In chapters dedicated to American whiskey (including bourbon, Tennessee whiskey, and rye), American Craft whiskey, Scotch, Irish, Canadian, Japanese, and world whiskies, Robinson presents the best offerings from new and historic producers, how to choose among them, and how to build a collection of your own. Each “class” is a journey into a country’s whiskies and makers, including recommended bottles and styles, as well as insider information on how distilleries make their unique offerings. Each chapter includes themed tastings organized by bargain, value, special occasion, and splurge price categories. This thoroughly up-to-date and wide-ranging guide also offers helpful recommendations on how to lead your own tasting, a glossary of terms, food pairings, and tips on everything from glassware to whiskey festivals and how to read a label.

Martin and Rebecca Cate, founders and owners of Smuggler’s Cove (the most acclaimed tiki bar of the modern era) take you on a colorful journey into the lore and legend of tiki: its birth as an escapist fantasy for Depression-era Americans; how exotic cocktails were invented, stolen, and re-invented; Hollywood starlets and scandals; and tiki’s modern-day revival, in this James Beard Award-winning cocktail book. Featuring more than 100 delicious recipes (original and historic), plus a groundbreaking new approach to understanding rum, Smuggler’s Cove is the magnum opus of the contemporary tiki renaissance. Whether you’re looking for a new favorite cocktail, tips on how to trick out your home tiki grotto, help stocking your bar with great rums, or inspiration for your next tiki party, Smuggler’s Cove has everything you need to transform your world into a Polynesian Pop fantasia. Make yourself a Mai Tai, put your favorite exotica record on the hi-fi, and prepare to lose yourself in the fantastical world of tiki, one of the most alluring—and often misunderstood—movements in American cultural history.

“Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!” A favorite of pirates, the molasses-colored liquid brings to mind clear blue seas, weather-beaten sailors, and port cities filled with bar wenches. But enjoyment of rum spread far beyond the scallywags of the Caribbean—Charles Dickens savored it in punch, Thomas Jefferson mixed it into omelets, Queen Victoria sipped it in navy grog, and the Kamehameha Kings of Hawaii drank it straight up. In Rum,Richard Foss tells the colorful, secret history of a spirit that not only helped spark the American Revolution but was even used as currency in Australia. This book chronicles the five-hundred-year evolution of rum from a raw spirit concocted for slaves to a beverage savored by connoisseurs. Charting the drink’s history, Foss shows how rum left its mark on religious rituals—it remains a sacramental offering among voodoo worshippers—and became part of popular songs and other cultural landmarks. He also includes recipes for sweet and savory rum dishes and obscure drinks, as well as illustrations of rum memorabilia from its earliest days to the tiki craze of the 1950s. Fast-paced and well written, Rum will delight any fan of mojitos and mai tais.