Bourbon, Strange: Surprising Stories of American Whiskey

by Charles K. Cowdery

How Did a Product with Four Simple Ingredients Get So Strange?A well-funded attempt to degrade bourbon winds up protecting it. A wealthy United States Treasury Secretary gives himself a valuable franchise and no one objects. A rye whiskey empire spawns a renowned robber baron. The biggest company in the business shoot itself in the foot, repeatedly. An American whiskey type is named after the king of France and no one knows why. Members of two reviled immigrant minorities save the bourbon industry. Mushrooms improve bourbon’s taste.Those are just a few of the surprising, true stories in Bourbon, Strange; the long-awaited sequel to Bourbon, Straight, the book that helped propel bourbon whiskey’s current robust revival.In Bourbon, Strange, many of characteristics that make bourbon a mite peculiar are clearly explained, such as how bourbon is made, how collectors find and identify rare bottles, how whiskey is marketed and regulated, and why people argue so much about spelling.

Genres: Booze

285 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 5, 2014

Reviews

[Rob Paczkowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you just pick this up, you really really have to want to know lots of facts and trivia about bourbon ( which I did). I just did the bourbon trail for a vacation. This trip makes quite a bit of the history pop because I was just at many of the places they were talking about. It can be dry at times if you don't know about some of the bourbons out there but if you want some facts on what you are drinking, who owns it and where much of it comes from, this is for you. If you are ok with disappointment in "the story" of some of your favorites, this is for you. If you really don't care what you buy but just like the taste of a particular brand, this isn't for you. This one book hits all the checks on bourbon facts and fiction .

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely an intriguing book even given my merely passing interest in whiskey. Lots of historical details, notes on businesses and brand strategies, and a modest look into the chemical engineering of American whiskey. I have not read Bourbon, Straight, and I wonder how much material must be repeated between the two; in any case, this book seems to stand on its own. It starts out with a fairly orderly sequence of topics, but by the middle of the book has become much more of a grab bag. The copy-editing was subpar... lots of missed periods and the occasional missing word, a passage involving a woman named Augusta where her name is often rendered Agusta, etc.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

Interesting accounts in bourbon’s history told in a dry, matter of fact style that sucks the life out of the more fascinating stories.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uneven, but at its highs…history, process stories, and classic tales of bourbon lore, this book shows ten years of book writing and structuring experience on its predecessor.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, informative read for bourbon enthusiasts (I read it on a trip to Bourbontucky for Old Forester’s Birthday Bourbon release). The history of American whiskey is vast, complicated, and a bit of a shell game with few actual distilleries owned by corporations, with brands changing hands frequently. My favorite stories were about Brown-Forman, who I think has been the most steadfast (Woodford Reserve, Old Forester... I don’t remember their other brands). On this particular trip, my affinity for Old Forester grew immensely! I wish I could remember some of the other interesting factoids I learned reading this, but I’m very belated in writing this review.