New fall reading for the cocktail, spirits or wine enthusiast includes a wine compendium, a guide to the ingredients that go into spirit-making, fun pairings of cocktails with video games and a look at fashionable cocktails in Paris.
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Credit: Handout
“Spirits Distilled” ($34.95, Westwood Press, published Oct. 15)
Author Nat Harry poured 20 years of beverage industry experience into this book, subtitled “A Guide to the Ingredients Behind a Better Bottle.” Spirits are demystified by approaching them in three categories: plant, place and production, peeling back the layers in an informative, engaging voice. The guide is chock-full of graphs, charts and tasting notes; reading the sidebars is a lesson in itself.
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Credit: Handout
“Scotch” ($26.99, Octopus Books, Nov. 12)
In this volume, subtitled “The Balmoral Guide to Scottish Whisky,” Cameron Ewen and Moa Reynolds, the experts behind Scotch bar in Edinburgh, include 100 of their most exciting bottles, with tasting notes and recipes. Bottles are organized by six regions, with profiles of distilleries. You easily could plan a tasting trip with this as a guide.
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Credit: Handout
“One Thousand Vines” ($55, Mitchell Beazley, Nov. 26)
Pascaline Lepeltier, one of about 25 women certified as master sommeliers, links the bottles, producers, vineyards and terroirs in this book, subtitled “A New Way to Understand Wine.” Featuring charts, informative graphics and illustrations, this is an essential resource for anyone who wants to understand wine. It’s a dense, detailed read, but Lepeltier breathes life into the subject.
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Credit: Handout
“Cocktails in Paris” ($19.95, Rizzoli)
Divided by seasons, this book by Audrey Laroux, subtitled “Fashionable Drinks for All Seasons,” includes 50 recipes and accompanying illustrations that are simple and elegant. Using the book, you can stir up such Parisian drinks as la tour Eiffel, made with cognac, triple sec and Suze bitters.
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Credit: Handout
“The World Atlas of Whisky” ($55, Mitchell Beazley, Nov. 26)
From Aberfeldy to Wyoming Whiskey, 500 distilleries around the world are profiled in this reference book by expert Dave Broom (expanded from 300 in the previous edition of the book). Included are gorgeous photos, maps, information on distillation processes and Broom’s valuable tasting notes.
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Credit: Handout
“Cocktails and Consoles” (Running Press, $26)
This volume, subtitled “75 Video Game Inspired Drinks to Level Up Your Game Night,” celebrates some of the most famous video games by way of a cocktail. Elias Eells created 75 recipes for gamers and lovers of those early pixelated games, with fun illustrations.
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Credit: Handout
“The Cocktail Cabinet — Whiskey” ($24.95, Smith Street Gift, Oct.1)
The recipe cards that come with this boxed book have mid-century flair — as pretty to display as they are useful. From an Algonquin to a whiskey sour, author Kara Newman provides 50 essential recipes that are easy to follow, with a snippet of fun history or lore accompanying each beautifully illustrated card. A companion volume by Newman, “The Cocktail Cabinet — Gin,” also is available Oct. 1 at $24.95.
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Credit: Handout
“The Hour of Absinthe” ($34.95, McGill-Queen’s University Press, Sept. 17)
Ever wonder why absinthe has such a scandalous reputation? In this book, subtitled “A Cultural History of France’s Most Notorious Drink,” author Nina S. Studer explores the notion that absinthe, banned at the beginning of the 20th century, was the biggest danger to people in French colonies, as well as all the nefarious ideologies associated with “the green fairy.”
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Credit: Handout
“In Fine Spirits” ($24.99, Mitchell Beazley, Oct. 29)
Though small in size, this book, subtitled “A Complete Guide to Distilled Drinks,” covers a library’s worth of libations. Joel Harrison and Neil Ridley begin by deciphering aromas and flavors — with lots of charts and graphs — before exploring the world of spirits. After each type of spirit’s history, production and culture are covered, as well as a maker profile, there are 10 suggested spirits to try. Each section ends with a Perfect Serve, the authors’ favorite cocktails to make with the spirit being covered.
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