Review
"Bernstein has written a book that will take the reader from 'beer novice' to 'intrepid and informed explorer' in no time flat."--Garrett Oliver, Brooklyn Brewery brewmaster and editor-in-chief of The Oxford Companion to Beer
"The Complete Beer Course belongs in the library of every beer lover, home brewer and professional brewer."--Jim Koch, founder, the Boston Beer Company
"Figuring out which beers you want to spend the most time with just got easier with Bernstein's romp through beer history, styles and thirst-provoking stories."--Charlie Papazian, author of The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
"It might be the best craft-beer book of 2013. But it is also, more important, both the product of a beer-centric age and a solution to its challenges—and, if we're lucky, an indication that beer writing is evolving to suit the needs of a broader audience." —Washington Post
". . . covers a variety of beer-related topics, including a nice breakdown on specific hops, terms glossary, a list of brew weeks by state and more.” —Cleveland Plain Dealer
"Structured as a 12-part course spanning the world of beers, this tome is terrifically comprehensive. Brooklyn-based beer expert and journalist Bernstein (brewed awakening: behind the beers and brewers leading the world's craft brewing revolution) shares his immense appreciation for a remarkable variety of beers. The result is appealingly chatty writing that, while definitely reading as a progression through what the author calls a 'boot camp,' is also encyclopedic in nature. Readers may be familiar with common styles such as ales and lagers but are likely to emerge keen to seek out less well-known tipples such as milk stout or gose (a salty, German style). The chapters are balanced between a focus on more typical representations of styles and niche varieties, and Bernstein suggests many favorites for the reader to taste while reading. Spotlights on particular breweries and beers and lavish illustrations make this book as enjoyable to flip through randomly as to read from start to finish. Verdict a wide-ranging volume that is sure to appeal to beer enthusiasts and casual consumers alike. Highly recommended for public libraries and collections with a focus on food and beverages." —Library Journal (STARRED REVIEW)
From the Inside Flap
Go on a fun, flavorful tour through the world of craft brews with one of the most unique and fascinating voices in beer today. In this thoroughly up-to-date, comprehensive, and utterly witty beer course (the only one currently available in print), Joshua M. Bernstein demystifies beer by "elementally breaking down the grains, yeast, hops, and techniques that cause beer's flavor to spin into thousands of distinctively delicious directions."
Not only has the work of Bernstein, a highly acclaimed beer expert, appeared in publications such as the New York Times and Imbibe, but he also leads a New York City tour of homebrewers' apartments and lofts as well as lectures around America. Now he has created this complete course for anyone who wants to choose from and enjoy the vast array of singular brews available today.
After giving you the tools to taste, smell, and evaluate beers, Bernstein takes you through a series of easy-to-understand classes that will have you hopping from lagers and pilsners to hazy wheat beers, Belgian-style abbey and Trappist ales, aromatic pale ales and bitter IPAs, roasty stouts, barrel-aged brews, belly-warming barley wines, and mouth-puckering sour ales. A sequence of suggested, targeted tastings will help you distinguish appropriate flavors and those that "signify that you should dump those beers down a drain." Features on the world's most visionary breweries, a glossary of terms, a chapter on pairing beer with food and starting your own beer cellar, an informative chart on hops, and a calendar of craft beer weeks complete the course.
"Years of experience and sampling have given me the confidence to pass on certain beers, and seek out others as rabidly as my dog does a chicken bone,"writes Bernstein. "The key is being armed with the necessary knowledge. That means learning the ropes, loosening your lips, and trying one beer after another, and another. Something tells me you'll like taking The Complete Beer Course, where earning extra credit has never been so much fun."
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