Both sophisticated and brutal, vodka is the best-selling spirit in the world. Distilled from rye or the humble potato, it has been known since the fourteenth century, when it was first used as a medicine, but it took James Bond and the Cold War to make it glamorous in the West. Chillingly versatile, vodka was popularized as a toast by Peter the Great, but it was also his favourite punishment for wrongdoers, who had to drink a whole barrel. Vodka is known to Russians as "the green snake" and "the water of life", and without it the history of Russia would be very different. Every Russian head of state has legislated for or against it, and interference by Gorbachev hastened the collapse of the Soviet Union, just as Nicholas II's vodka prohibition contributed to the end of Imperial Russian. Vodka is now a firm favourite in the Western world, particularly with younger drinkers. Often drunk ice-cold and straight for its own unique taste, its versatility in enhancing fruit flavours has also led to special designer flavours created for different cities of the U.S.A. Exploring vodka in all its aspects, and including research in the vodka museums of Moscow and St. Petersburg, The Dedalus Book of Vodka demystifies the subject without ever spoiling its ambivalent and subtle qualities. AUTHOR: Geoffrey Elborn has written three biographies, and contributed to many other books, most recently The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. He reviews for several journals. A life long interest in Russia began with his reading Dostoevsky's The House of the Dead at the age of ten.
- ISBN:
- 9781907650048
- 9781907650048
- Category:
- Cookery / food & drink etc
- Format:
- Hardback
- Publication Date:
- 06-06-2013
- Publisher:
- Dedalus Ltd
- Country of origin:
- United Kingdom
- Pages:
- 240
- Dimensions (mm):
- 198x127x0mm
- Weight:
- 0.34kg
Click 'Notify Me' to get an email alert when this item becomes available
Great!
Click on Save to My Library / Lists
Click on Save to My Library / Lists
Select the List you'd like to categorise as, or add your own
Here you can mark if you have read this book, reading it or want to read
Awesome! You added your first item into your Library
Great! The fun begins.
Click on My Library / My Lists and I will take you there
Click on My Library / My Lists and I will take you there
Reviews
Be the first to review Dedalus Book of Vodka.
Share This Book: