The definitive Reference Guide to Alcohol-based drinks and mixers, and how to choose, store and serve them.

Beverage Basics presents a new approach to understanding wine and other alcoholic beverages. The book includes an introduction to alcoholic beverages, information on important issues such as purchasing beverages, healthy drinking, and alcohol and the law, and an introduction to wine including viticulture, viniculture, and the sensory evaluation of wine. The authors teach readers about wines by varietal as opposed to appellation, which is a much simpler entry point for beginners to the world of wine. In addition to all the major wine varietals (Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, etc.), the book also covers hybrid and Native American varieties, sparkling wines, and dessert and fortified wines. Chapters on beer and distilled spirits include information on making, purchasing, and evaluating beer and spirits. The appendices include map-filled sections on The Old World and The New World of wine, as well as a thorough examination of the TTB requirements for alcoholic beverage labels, and a complete glossary of terms. Author Robert Small is former Dean and Emeritus Professor of The Collins College of Hospitality Management at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where he still teaches courses on wine, spirits, and beer and on beverage marketing and food and beverage management, and is the Chairman of the Los Angeles International Wine competition, one of the largest and most prestigious wine competitions in the United States.

An accessible and fact-filled visual guide to alcoholic drinks, how they are produced, where they come from, choosing and tasting, and a world directory to the best wines, beers and spirits.

Providing a comprehensive and authoritative reference to alcoholic drinks of every kind, this encyclopedia shows how to identify and prepare alcoholic drinks from all around the world.'

"The first major reference work to investigate the history and vast scope of beer, The Oxford Companion to Beer features more than 1,100 A-Z entries written by 166 of the world's most prominent beer experts"-- Provided by publisher.

From crisp and dry white wines to full-bodied reds, from dark and creamy ales to fruity and fresh cocktails, this unsurpassed reference is a celebration of drinks from around the world. This all-in-one reference provides recipes for more than 1,000 drinks organized by style and taste, information on buying, storing, and serving, it includes recommations on food pairings as well. A must-have for every home bar or kitchen.

Enhanced by specific beer and wine recommendations, a colorful handbook explains how to pair both types of beverages with a wide assortment of foods and includes interactive quizzes to help readers identify and record their preferences, step-by-step recipes and relevant beverage suggestions, and more than two hundred full-color illustrations.