Empire of Booze

by Henry Jeffreys

Winner of the Fortnum and Mason Best Debut Drink Book Award 2017

From renowned booze correspondent Henry Jeffreys comes this rich and full-bodied history of Britain and the Empire, told through the improbable but true stories of how the world’s favourite alcoholic drinks came to be.

Read about how we owe the champagne we drink today to seventeenth-century methods for making sparkling cider; how madeira and India Pale Ale became legendary for their ability to withstand the long, hot journeys to Britain’s burgeoning overseas territories; and why whisky became the familiar choice for weary empire builders who longed for home.

Jeffreys traces the impact of alcohol on British culture and society: literature, science, philosophy and even religion have reflections in the bottom of a glass. Filled to the brim with fascinating trivia and recommendations for how to enjoy these drinks today, you could even drink along as you read…

So, raise your glass to the Empire of Booze!

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Food, Booze

286 pages, Paperback

First published February 25, 2016

Reviews

[K.J. Charles]

Great concept, tracing the history of various sorts of alcohol and linking it to the history of trade, travel and empire. I think an actual historian would have done a better job of that than a drinks expert; it felt like there was an awful lot of stuff about trade and culture and immigration and wars that could have been dug into a bit more. However, it's a handy executive summary with plenty of interesting stuff about how wine tastes and production have changed over time, so very useful if you want a book specifically about the history of booze.

[C Phil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Far more interesting than it has any right to be.

And the reason I now have far more expensive booze in my house than before, and of a far broader range as well.

[Vikas Datta · Rating 5 out of 5]

A frightfully good read and quite informative too - for the rest of my views:

https://in.news.yahoo.com/spirited-hi...

[Aurel Mihai · Rating 5 out of 5]

The text itself is good. Lots of fun facts. Very interesting how large an impact booze has had on world events. This particular history is presented mainly as a series of stories, which makes it particularly palatable. There is also some good booze background. It's a fun and informative book that doesn't take itself too seriously and does exactly what it set out to do very well.

I suppose I would have liked to read more about booze in America. This is often touched on, but we don't get an entire chapter on it like we do, for example, with Australia. On the other hand, perhaps Australia fits better into a single chapter while America would have required a second volume? No offense to the Aussies. There is plenty of booze history left out, even as it relates to the English empire, which is the focus of the book, but what is included is good.

I listened to David Thorpe's reading of this book and I think that also added a lot to my enjoyment of it. The book is full of humorous little bits that he brings out perfectly. He is also a dynamic reader, full of energy, and the accents are good too. Very engaging.

[Duncan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breezy read on the history of the British Empire as it interacted with and influenced the production and distribution of alcoholic drinks. Jeffreys' main point is that, though most spirits/wines are not produced in Britain, over the last centuries they have been produced mainly FOR the UK market, and thus English tastes have been hugely influential in determining what wine, whiskey, port, rum, champagne, gin, sherry, madeira, and beer taste and look like today.
The book is full of interesting vignettes and factoids (if history is your thing), such as how techniques for adding bubbles to Champagne were actually developed in England for making bubbly cider.
The book is easy to read, with good humor, and good pace. I really liked the sections "Drinking the Empire" in which he gives suggestions for each of the drinks, especially those he thinks would be most like what used to be drunk at the time.
Its weaknesses include: too many vignettes and characters, with some being quite oblique/irrelevant to the thrust of the chapter's narrative, just too much stuff that will be very quickly forgotten.

[Jeffrey Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun reading about Britain's influence on various popular alcoholic beverages. The author swans through multiple areas with a breezy style and a clear opinion, and several great trivia points -- useful in a pub or your social drinking circle. Perhaps such a circle was the genesis of this book? A plausible notion, as it is a first-book effort. A second edition might include some photos and footnotes. I appreciated the chapters on Port and Madeira, as I am now resident in Portugal, and the author's notes basically match the common story. There were a surprising number of scotsmen in the wine business, and I am acquainted with a number of the later generations still resident in the land, still quite British. The most intriguing claim in the book is the British innovation of glassmaking that improved bottle structure, and the idea of in-bottle fermentation for cider, and then champagne.

[Alissa McCarthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heard about this book because the author was a guest on my favorite history podcast. A delightful, if not deeply historical, review of Britain and the Empire, told through the improbable but true stories of how the world's favorite alcoholic drinks came to be. Jeffreys traces the impact of alcohol on British culture and society: literature, science, philosophy, and even religion have reflections in the bottom of a glass. I listened to the audio version and I think that was key to my enjoyment. The narrator - with his different voices and accents - read with a joy for the subject that was contagious.

[JRW · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at the history of the British empire through the lens of alcohol or a look at the evolution of British tastes in alcohol through the lens of empire. The author asserts that the British influence on alcohol is far reaching and absolute. I take the author’s point in some specific drinks such as english porter but for others he examines the British influence is drawing a long bow (no slightly obscure pun intended). Nonetheless a fun read packed with interesting little facts and anecdotes.

[Karolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a well researched book about the history of the influence of the British empire on the alcohol industry as a whole. It is a microhistory type of book with a great understanding that most people reading it would have general knowledge of the alcohol history overall. I love the drink the empire sections, as they give a personal touch.

[Mike · Rating 1 out of 5]

Although I appreciate the notion of crowd-funding and self-publishing, this book is sorely in need of editing. I also lament the absence of footnotes to corroborate the claims and assertions. Not much of a history and not much of a read.

[James Slaven · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book on the history of the interactions between the British Empire and alcohol. Some small sections, with recommendations, could one day become dated, but over 95% of the book will be accurate forever. Well written and researched!

[Henrik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read about the English empire and the different kinds of booze throughout that era, but it felt a bit uneven to me. Too many chapters about wine

[M-N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating history. Drink and all that entails

[Deepak Dewan · Rating 4 out of 5]

"inebriating ly" interesting book!

[Howard Davenport · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting history of booze
Xmas pressie from Jackie and Mike

[Olya · Rating 2 out of 5]

In serious need of an editor (and grammar police). The verbosity made what could have been interesting unreadable.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book despite being a tea totaller. Really interesting subject matter, well written. Learnt a lot

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a Christmas gift from a few years ago and I don't know why I put off reading it, it was a fascinating look at the history of certain alcoholic drinks as influenced by Britain (for good or bad). I learn so many interesting facts! I would definitely recommend to anyone with an interest in how alcohol is made (rather than just an interest in drinking it).

Each section has drinking notes at the end to give you some suggestions on what to look for if you want to try some of the mentioned drinks.

[Brian Greiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful book for anyone interested in history and alcoholic beverages, and how the two intersect.
There is a lot of interesting history to learn from this book, and the author does it deftly and with a sense of lightheartedness. For each type of alcoholic beverage examined the author goes into some background of how it got started, how the British influence changed it, and how it all fits into a larger historical context. Each chapter concludes with a "drinking the empire" section which gives the author's suggestions of quality examples of the beverage under discussion. The suggestions strive to include examples that reflect both older and newer styles. I'm going to go through and make a list of them to put on my smartphone, so I know what to look for the next time I visit the local alcohol monger.

[Jason RB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant book, easy to read and full of little snippets of stuff that will amaze and turn your view of history upside down.

[Gerard Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent well pitched exploration of one of my favourite subjects, booze.
Also along the way there is some excellent history explaining why some drinks make the journey between unfashionable to fashionable and others make the journey in the opposite direction. The effect the British Empire had on the drink we consume to this very day.