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Bourbon: A History Of The American Spirit (2014)

by Dane Huckelbridge(Favorite Author)

3.61 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0062241397 (ISBN13: 9780062241399)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

William Morrow

review 1: “Ray. People will come, Ray. They'll come to Kentucky for reasons they can't even fathom. They'll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they're doing it. They'll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. "Of course, we won't mind if you look around", you'll say, "It's only $20 per person". They'll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they'll walk out to the distillery; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the copper stills, where they sat when they were children and cheered their master distiller heroes. And they'll watch the corn mash bubble and it'll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. The m... moreemories will be so thick they'll have to brush them away from their faces. People will come, Ray. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been bourbon. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But bourbon has marked the time. This distillery, this whiskey: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good and that could be again. Oh...people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come.”In this tongue and cheek treatment of bourbon's rise, from a simple copper still in Jamestown's founding years to the small-batch masterpieces that many of us sip at today, Dane Huckelbridge (a fine name construction for someone seeking to chart bourbon's heritage) attempts to give bourbon the same majestic influence on America's history as Ken Burns treated baseball or jazz music. Whether intentional or not, that is the impression I gathered as I read along; by the end of the book, I couldn't help myself but to think about the words delivered with such gravity by James Earl Jones in Field of Dreams, equally weighty had he been talking instead about finely-aged corn whiskey.This is an enjoyable book, not high-level history but does well enough to describe the innovations and transformations bourbon has undergone in this country's history. Plenty of amusing and interesting anecdotes to keep the reader interested, this is a relatively quick read if you are inclined.
review 2: When I poured through my massive American History text in high school, there was a mere glossing over on the role of whiskey in the Whiskey Rebellion as well as the correlating taxes that would help shape the financial infrastructure of our fledgling country. Mentions of whiskey were peppered throughout the pages, but I now know that I could not have possibly begin to comprehend or appreciate the scope of the impact of bourbon without having actually tasted and savored it. Huckelbridge's tone throughout the book is informative, eloquent, and at times casual, making it accessible to folks from many walks of life. He depicts the evolution of our great nation through key stages of our political, economic, and social growth, but stitched the quilt together with a piece of Americana that only the grown ups could play with. Big names throughout history are dropped in every chapter, answering many of the questions I couldn't ask as a high schooler. I have finally gained clarity as to "what's the big deal about the Whiskey Tax?" question I posed to my very exasperated AP History teacher in eleventh grade.Huckelbridge digs down to the deep set roots of bourbon, exposing the family tress of key individuals whose contributions and methods have paved the way for the pillars of modern bourbon making today. Additionally, the creation process of bourbon is explained with layman's terms for those unfamiliar with the distilling process. The footnotes are quite entertaining, giving the reader the impression that Huckelbridge is leaning in to give you some of the best dirt you'll take to the grave. Admittedly, I had to hit up a dictionary for a handful of word choices, but it merely accentuated my interest in the topic. Though I read Huckelbridge's work from cover to cover without a single drop, I now have a new found appreciation and desire to learn more. As a girl raised in The South, I now feel a deeper connection and responsibility to further my knowledge about bourbon, or at least sweep the category entire should it pop up on Jeopardy. less

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