Spirited Reading: Four New Books for the Spring

It’s been raining. It’s been pouring. Temperatures are slowly climbing. These are all sure signs as ever that spring is here. And with the new season comes new books. Here are four, two just released and two forthcoming, that I’ve been looking forward to diving into.

First up is Dave Broom’s Rum: The Manual (currently available). This is the third in Broom’s “Manual” series, following Whisky and Gin. Perhaps, because Broom has fined-tuned his writing and methodology for these books, this is truly the best in the series. His description of rum production methods is second to none. This combined with the fact that barely any single subject books on rum have been published in the last decade, barring the adjacent topic of Tiki, makes this tome a must-have.

Also just published is Granville Greene’s Mezcal Rush: Explorations in Agave Country. Greene, who has written for The New York Times, spent a year living in Mexico documenting the work of maestro mezcaleros and ever-hopeful local entrepreneurs. This journalistic travelogue delves into regional history, production techniques and larger philosophic questions regarding what makes for an authentic spirit.

June will see the release of Tom Acitelli’s Whiskey Business: How Small-Batch Distillers Are Transforming American Spirits. Acitelli, who is a James Beard Award finalist, has written books about wine and beer, but this is his first foray into spirits. With positive reviews from Clay Risen, Philip Greene and Wayne Curtis, Whiskey Business promises to deliver a critical and enticing history of how craft spirits have evolved over the last quarter century and, in turn, shaped the booze business as a whole.

Finally, on the tail of Broom’s look at rum, we’ll see the June release of Fred Minnick’s Rum Curious. If this book is anything like its predecessor Bourbon Curious, we’ll be thankful for the clarity it lends in deciphering an often muddled topic. I am particularly excited to see how Minnick explains the great variety in fermenting, distilling, and maturing processes, no easy task given how diverse rums can be. Rain or (hopefully) shine, now you know what I’ll be reading this spring to better understand the constantly changing world of spirits. – Scott Rosenbaum