New IPA Book - Hops & Glory - One Man's Search for the Beer That Built the British Empire

[nzbrewer]

-- Pre-Order for half price -- Due out 5th June

Hops & Glory - One Man's Search for the Beer That Built the British Empire
by Pete Brown

The original India Pale Ale was pure gold in a glass – a semi-mythical beer from the late eighteenth century, brewed in Britain to travel halfway around the world, through ocean storms and tropical sunshine and arrive in perfect condition for a long, cold drink on an Indian verandah. And although you can still buy beers with ‘IPA’ on the label today, most are – frankly – pale imitations of the original.

"For the first time in 140 years, a keg of traditional Burton IPA has been brewed for a voyage to India by canal and tall ship, around the Cape of Good Hope; and the man carrying it is Pete Brown, award-winning beer writer. Brazilian pirates and Iranian customs officials lie ahead, but will he even make it that far, having fallen in the canal just a few miles outside Burton-on-Trent? And if Pete does make it to the other side of the world with ‘Barry’ the barrel, one question remains: what will the real IPA taste like?

"Weaving first-class travel writing and new historical research with assured comedy, Hops and Glory is both a rollicking, raucous history of the Raj and a wonderfully entertaining, groundbreaking experiment to recreate the finest beer ever brewed."

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[studio1]

Well I've just finished reading this thoroughly enjoyable book. Fantastically historical and a great insight into IPA and the Raj.

Anyway - I requested this book be purchased by the Auckland library - which they did. I'll be returning it tomorrow - so any Aucklanders who want to read it may want to get to their local to reserve it.

I had tried to read Brown's earlier book - Three Sheets To The Wind - also from the library. Unfortunately I gave up half way through - I didn't find this one particularly interesting to read. He also irked me a bit with some poncy comments about home brewing.

That withstanding Hops and Glory is a masterpiece.