The Drunken Botanist

The Drunken Botanist (2013) Amy Stewart

I love food and history and botany, and this book is all three.

It’s the botany of various plants that are used to make alcohol, and history of those plants and those drinks with recipes for various drinks thrown in.

And all kinds of important information about flavor

Water actually loosens the hold that alcohol has on aromatic molecules, which heightens rather than dilutes the flavor.

And history

the Renaissance, an era of great discovery that included the realization that any number of wonderful things happen when fruit, spices, and nuts are soaked in brandy.

And botany

In the hottest weather, citrus can remain stubbornly green. It turns out that the most vivid color develops only when the night air takes on a slight chill…

Cooler temperatures break down the chlorophyll in the rind, letting the orange pigments show through.

And politics

Stalin had some funny ideas about science: he believed that a person’s behavior could change their genetic makeup, so that habits learned in one lifetime could be passed on through their DNA. Scientists who disagreed went to jail for it.

What more could one want from a book?

Publisher: Algonquin Books

Rating: 8/10

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