Boozehound: On the Trail of the Rare, the Obscure, and the Overrated in Spirits
I just finished reading Boozehound by Jason Wilson and I have to highly recommend it to anyone and everyone, from the liquor novice to the most experienced drinker.
Don’t know much about spirits, but enjoy them nonetheless? This book is for you.
Ever wonder what the stories behind the brands are? This book is definitely for you.
Looking to expand your horizons beyond Grey Goose, Bombay Sapphire, Patron and Bacardi? Looking to expand beyond vodka, gin, tequila and rum, for that matter? Ahoy, this book is for you.
Just enjoy reading about travel, entertaining rendezvouses and conversations, and love a quick, engaging read? This book is still for you.
Budding boozehound? This book is for you!
Budding alcoholic? Tough call, but this book is probably still for you.
Your favorite drink in the whole world is Coors Light, someone around you is shirtless and/or has a mullet or red trucker cap, or a quiet Friday night at home involves hitting up the club and downing 12 shots of Jager and Cuervo and waking up in a ditch on Saturday morning (credit to 10 Rules to Drinking Like A Man)? Hey, gotta draw the line somewhere — unfortunately, this book is probably not for you. But you could read it anyways!
Jason Wilson writes the spirits column for the Washington Post and teaches writing at Drexel. This book is 2 parts travelogue, 1 part spirits primer and 2 splashes introduction to classic cocktails, garnished with some sarcastic humor. My favorites stories featured in the book are:
- His recounting of his first encounters with alcohol (a bottle of sambuca)…reminded a lot of my first experiences
- The game of Liquor Store Archeology he invented with his brother, where they would they stopped by decades-old liquor stores all over the country trying to find the most random, obscure, dust-covered bottles they could find
- His trip to Sweden where a farmer gave him a kaffegok, a shot of vodka in coffee, which started a conversation between me and my sister on all things Swedish alcohol
- His stories of European liqueurs, including one of 2 Carthusian monks, each of whom only knows half of the recipe for Chartreuse, or beret-wearing farmers on bikes who pick elderflowers for St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur
There are many more really interesting stories in the book. Really hope you’ll pick it up and give it a read…I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!
