1001 Beers: You Must Try Before You Die

by Adrian Tierney-Jones

Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in the world, the most refreshing, the most sociable, and the most versatile. It has been brewed since the dawn of time and still has the capacity to delight and obsess its many adherents. This bewitching, thirst-inducing, gorgeously illustrated book is a guide to the best beers in the world with a succinct history of the breweries, tasting notes, temperature recommendations, and what food to serve them with, together with entertaining anecdotes about the breweries. Here you will sample world classics such as the ales of England, the speciality beers of Belgium, the new wave beers of U.S. craft brewers, the magical lagers of Germany and Central Europe, and a host of world beers that will beguile and bedazzle. The reader might not drink all these beers in their lifetime, but after reading this book they will know which ones will be their personal favorites.

Genres: Beer, Nonfiction, Reference, Food and Drink, Alcohol

964 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Paul Bryant]

Okay here's what we do. First we apply to the British Arts Council for a grant. That's the easy part. Then we get this book and buy one bottle of each of the 1001 great beers. Then, we buy the 1001 albums we must hear before we die, the 1001 movies we have to see before we die and the 1001 books we have to read before we die. sadly, I think we have to admit we can't fit the 1001 men and/or 1001 women we must shag before we die into this project. That part is just impractical, and anyway, there's no guide yet published, so we wouldn't know who they are. (You might be one of them! Imagine finding yourself on page 723!) So, with our books, movies, albums and beers piled onto a chartered jet, we set off for the first of the 1001 fabulous places we must visit before we die. Let's say it's Skeleton Coast, Namibia – apparently that’s one of them. So we get there, we stay in one of the 1001 hotels we must stay in before we die, we eat one of the 1001 breakfasts we must eat before we die, then we get started on the first movie, the first album and the first book.
Memo : this would all be much more sensible if there WAS a guide to the 1001 men and 1001 women you have to shag before you die. Because then, these 2002 beauteous curvaceous non-botoxed depilated and remarkably humble yet thrillingly bold creatures could all go off and read, visit, guzzle, eat, watch and shag. And I’m sure a camera crew would be with them so we could watch the reality tv show which ensued. And they would be ticking away at lists the whole day long, as they traipsed on and off the chartered jet - done that, read that, oops, not done Finnegans Wake yet and I've not shagged YOU yet, do you think we could do both tonight darling, whilst sharing this very respectable bottle of Scruttock's Old Dirigible? I'll see you in Room 69 at 7.45. At 9 I'm booked for a double bill of Fellini Satyricon and Ken Loach's gritty depiction of working class desperation Raining Stones. Oh and while we're shagging and reading finnegans Wake could we play Public Enemy's It takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back? I haven't heard that one yet. Thanks awfully. And when they got to the last book, the last movie, last album, last breakfast and the last enfeebled shag in the last hotel, a waiter looking a lot like John Cleese would be solicitously enquiring “just one more Chekhov short story, Mesdames et messieurs, just one more B side, one little extra movie trailer, one more ‘umble banger, one more rasher of bacon” but he would find they had all expired with uncanny expressions of horror on their by now raddled, uncomely faces because there was nothing life could now offer them.

[La Crosse County Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review originally published October 2015

Microbreweries are becoming ever so popular these days, and La Crosse is lucky to have a few brew pubs and microbreweries to boast about. It’s nice to have a choice of a winery or microbrewery to visit. But on a hot summer day there is nothing like an ice cold beer! And now you can try one of many craft beers there is to offer.

I can’t think of a better book than 1,001 Beers You Must Taste Before You Die by Adrian Tierney-Jones, which surprises me, because I used to be among the ranks of women who disliked the taste of beer. This book is the size of a dictionary, but don’t let that keep you from checking it out. I loved the format of this book with pictures on each page and a short description of each beer. There are SO many beers to try and there is a craft beer suitable for just about everyone, even if you claim you don’t like beer. Move over Bud Light, Coors, Michelob and the likes. Currently, the breweries boast of root beer flavored beer, fruity beers, many different flavors of stouts, and more to tempt or satisfy our tastes.

The index in this book includes all countries and the chapters are divided by the types of beer, which are amber, blond, white, dark, and specialty. Since we are in the autumn season and Oktoberfest took place in October you might want to search for seasonal beers at your favorite local store. If you want to experiment with Oktoberfest and fall flavored brews then try "Autumnal Fire," brewed at Capitol Brewery in Madison, "Cottonwood Pumpkin Spiced Ale" brewed by Carolina Beer Company in North Carolina, and "Imperial Pumpkin" brewed by Southern Tier Brewery.

Of course, you can find your own as I did recently on an out-of-town visit with relatives. My brother-in-law who I like to talk beer with shared his favorite brewed by Shipyard and is called "Pumpkinhead." I have now found my favorite! It literally tastes like pumpkin pie. Another favorite of mine at this time of year (and believe it or not is not even in this book) is New Glarus’s "Fat Squirrel." It is an English brown ale and has a subtle nutty flavor. For those who would like to learn more about beer there is also a glossary. And even more helpful is an index of beers by brewery.

Please stop in at any La Crosse County library in Bangor, Campbell, Holmen, Onalaska, and West Salem to check this topic out. You can also request books and other materials at home or at your home library.

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[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure if this is really 1001 beers anyone should try before they die. It's much more of a coffee table book.

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

While I can't say that I have finished this book, it's one I constantly come back to in order to check whether ive tried this beer, or not as the case may be. Or even to read what is said of a particular beer.

This book, which was a fantastic christmas present, reinvigorated my quest to taste as many beers as I possibly can from around the world. And is highly informative.

Since reading this I have compiled a list of my own for the beers I've tried and a rating for each. I wish I had done this sooner.

This book is highly recommended for beer lovers everywhere

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course, this is a snapshot (as of 2010 in this edition’s case), and it cannot delve too deeply into the limited editions and collabs which many times end up being some of my favorites, but you can’t beat this for an attractive list to log and breeze through, with very high quality images throughout. I’m a sucker for these books.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any attempt to create a list of beers to try will invariably be rendered arbitrary by the sheer quantity and variety of beers available; without any hyperbole intended, it is quite literally possible to generate 1,001 lists of 1,001 beers to try without any overlap. With that said, I felt that the list and the way that the beers were laid out, made for both an entertaining and informative read. Though the book contains a fair amount of beer knowledge, its true point (in this reviewer's opinion) is simply to inform on a number of different styles of beers.

As a beer aficionado who keeps his own list of beers tried (approaching 700), I found the book to be a useful resource as it provided me with specific suggestions of beers or even styles that I had never encountered before. Whether one is interested in reading about a variety of beers within a single type or beers that represent a multitude of styles, 1,001 Beers is an excellent read.

My largest and, perhaps, only gripe with the book (and one for which you will have to forgive me) is the writing. Granted, I would not expect a book whose purpose is recreational erudition, at the loftiest end, or simple cataloguing at the opposing pole, to be filled with flowing lyricism and musical metaphors...but when such a book attempts to do so sporadically, the lack of consistency in writing comes across as an identity crisis of sorts. Granted, again, that each beer entry is written by one of a number of contributors and, consequently, there will be a noticeable difference between writing styles, I still feel that the lack of unity in the writing took something away from the overall reading experience; seeing some bizarre or inexcusable typographical errors didn't help either. I can understand also the difficulty in describing literally hundreds of "dark" beers, for example, and keeping the tasting notes fresh and varied...but to see no fewer than half a dozen or more beers described as "dark as a moonless night" is a bit redundant.

Overall, a great read for someone who is interested in expanding their knowledge of beer overall and styles in particular, as well as adding to one's (hopefully) growing list of beers to try.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is closer to a 'beers you should try' before you die - not 1,001 beers of all time, and that's a good thing. The things this books does well:

1. Great variety of beers by style and region
2. Organized simply by color, not style, makes this accessible to everyone
3. Many easy to obtain beers couple by beers only located locally, not just in US, but overseas as well
4. Some nice story and anecdotes about the beer, brewery, etc.

[Barry]

Obviously not a book to read cover to cover (unless you're insanely obsessed with beer!) Over one thousand beers is a lot of brewskies and you'll never sample them all, but here is where to start your exploration. Broken down by region, type and brewery (indexes for the 1st and 3rd), this book is a valuable source of information. Begin by browsing the types: Amber, Blonde, White, Dark, Specialty, then search by country or brewery for your specific faves.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

And yet, so many seem to be missing. Still and all, a global representation and given the quality of those already tasted I'd vouch for the rest too. A lot of good history for the beers and breweries too which is most welcome.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flipping through this makes me thirsty.Good thing I got beer.

[Rob Manwaring · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Father's Day present, thankyouverymuch, SJP! I've drunk about 20 of these. So only 9981 to go! Hic.

[Rob Osment · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on different beers around the world to try, with detailed descriptions and clear photos of each bottle to help you identify them.

At my last count, I've had around 200 so only 801 to go!

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A comprehensive bucket list of beers and great source of reference. However, in the ever evolving world of brewing such a books are out of date as soon as published.