Hops and Glory: One Man's Search for the Beer That Built the British Empire

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Pan Macmillan, 2010 - Business & Economics - 458 pages
The original India Pale Ale was pure gold in a glass; a semi-mythical beer specially invented, in the 19th century, to travel halfway around the world, through storms and tropical sunshine, and arrive in perfect condition for a long, cold drink on an Indian verandah. But although you can still buy beers with 'IPA' on the label they are, to be frank, a pale imitation of the original. For the first time in 140 years, a keg of Burton IPA has been brewed with the original recipe for a voyage to India by canal and tall ship, around the Cape of Good Hope; and the man carrying it is the award-winning Pete Brown, Britain's best beer write. Brazilian pirates and Iranian customs officials lie ahead, but will he even make it that far, have fallen in the canal just a few miles out of Burton? 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 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 produced

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About the author (2010)

Pete Brown used to advertise beer for a living before he realized that writing about it was even more fun, and came with even more free beer. He contributes to various newspapers, magazines and beer trade press titles, writes the annual report on Britain's cask ale market, sings beer's praises on TV and radio, and runs an influential blog. In 2009, Pete was awarded the Michael Jackson Gold Tankard Award and named Beer Writer of the Year by the British Guild of Beer Writers. (No, not that Michael Jackson, the other one.)

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