Download A Natural History of Beer Audible Audio Edition Ian Tattersall Rob DeSalle Johnny Heller Recorded Books Books

Product details Audible Audiobook Listening Length 6 hours and 59 minutes Program Type Audiobook Version Unabridged Publisher Recorded Books Audible.com Release Date February 27, 2019 Language English, English ASIN B07P7X3YFR

A Natural History of Beer Audible Audio Edition Ian Tattersall Rob DeSalle Johnny Heller Recorded Books Books Reviews

• You’ve got to be kidding, I thought, when I saw Ian Tattersall’s name as an author of this book, ‘A Natural History of Beer’ and that the publisher was Yale University Press. I read Ian Tattersall’s ‘The Fossil Trail’ about twenty years ago. That was a fantastic book about how we gain knowledge of evolution through the study of fossils. Tattersall is the emeritus curate of the American Museum of Natural History (his co-author is also a curator there).
  
  This book is real. An it is one of the most interesting books on beer I have read. It has a lot of scientific explanations about how we get the magic from beer (and other alcoholic drinks) – ethyl alcohol. It is found in abundance in nature, and so, we are not the only living creatures that imbibe alcohol, so the authors tell us. In chapter 4 they tell us all about beer cultures from Saint Paul, Minnesota to Australia, and the ritualistic culture of beer drinking in Japan, with its equivalent of the Westerner’s ‘six o’clock swill’.
  
  Then comes chapters on the ingredients of beer – water, yeast, barley, and hops. Part three of the book tells us about the beer-making process, and how we process beer in our bodies. Chapter 12 will interest all beer drinkers, and we will all have a good laugh. The chapter is titled, ‘Beer bellies’, and it explains how and why overweight cause men to be apple-shaped and women, pear-shaped. The next chapter explains what happens when beer (and other alcohol) enters our bodies. Their explanation as to what happens when the alcohol reaches our brains is riveting. Only a pair of scientists who drink (there is photographic evidence of this in the book jacket) can explain this process so scientifically and yet so clearly without putting the reader off drinking; although one suspects that their intention is quite the opposite.
  
  They end with a commentary on craft beer, and the future of beer. And if you enjoy this book as I did, you will be happy to know that this pair had written a book in 2015 entitled, ‘A Natural History of Wine’. Cheers.
• love it
• I liked the details of the chemistry of beer that included the grains, hops, water, and their interaction. How each affected alcohol content, color, clarity, taste and other characteristics. Plus there are other fascinated aspects of the book on beer's history, how it affects us when we drink it (good and bad) and beer manufacturers. I bought the audio book but will buy the hard cover for easier reference.
• Interesting book that's pretty funny