Beer History Books?

[Cat Assistant Brewery]

Anybody got any good recommendation for books about beer history? I got some history from reading books about brewing different styles but looking for real deep dive on the history end. I really want read up on the brewing landscape right before,during and right after prohibition. Any suggest would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Sam_92]

I've heard good things about Ambitious Brew by Maureen Ogle, I haven't gotten around to reading it yet but I want to.

Not the period you're looking for but Audacity of Hops by Tom Acitelli was a really good book covering the craft beer movement since Anchor Point and New Albion up to now.

 

[D.B.Moody]

I have Ambitious Brew, Maureen Ogle, 2006, Harcourt. A good book and a fair amount devoted to the prohibition era.
Not what you asked about, but for a fun history Beer by Gregory Smith, 1995 Avon Books.

 

[grampamark]

The American Brewery by Bill Yenne, covers the history of the brewing industry in America from colonial times to the early 21st century. About half of the content deals with the growth of the industry up until Prohibition and the changes which occurred after.

 

[MaxStout]

The Classic Beer Styles series books devote a large section to the history of the styles. They were published in the '90s, but still worthwhile to get. You can usually find them new & used on Amazon.

 

[Brooothru]

I have Ambitious Brew, Maureen Ogle, 2006, Harcourt. A good book and a fair amount devoted to the prohibition era.
Not what you asked about, but for a fun history Beer by Gregory Smith, 1995 Avon Books.

Double for Ambitious Brew.

Another favorite of mine is A History of the World in Six Glasses by Tom Standage. Although not strictly a book on beer history, the author (an author of history books) outlines his thesis of the six beverages that shaped civilization. It's lighthearted, quick and easy read, yet highly factual look at our evolution and social advancement.

*Spoiler alert: beer is one of the six beverages.

 

[mashpaddled]

I have Ambitious Brew, Maureen Ogle, 2006, Harcourt. A good book and a fair amount devoted to the prohibition era.
Not what you asked about, but for a fun history Beer by Gregory Smith, 1995 Avon Books.

Ambitious Brew is a good read especially around the larger trends in beer involving the bigger lager breweries in the country. There are a lot of smaller, regional trends you won't find well documented in the book but Prohibition had mostly the same effect on the industry top to bottom.

 

[eshea3]

Mark Dredge A Brief History of Lager
Martyn Cornell, Amber Gold and Black Amber, Gold & Black: The History of Britain's Great Beers - Kindle edition by Cornell, Martyn. Cookbooks, Food & Wine Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com. ( a steal at $2.99 for the Kindle version)
Roger Protz, The Family Brewers of Britain

 

[kevin58]

Everything written by Ron Pattinson. He has written about the history of every English beer style you can name. His books cover the Victorian era... Early 1900's, WWI and WWII era's right up to modern times. Most books contain tons of recipes taken from brewers log books. Perhaps the best one to get started with is The Homebrewers Guide to Vintage Beer. Each chapter is about a specific style with a brief history of the style followed by several recipe examples.

Gyle Brews by Peter Symon is a good read if you are interested in partigyle brews. He describes the process and tells you how to design your recipes to do the same.

If you want to go way back in history to the 1700's there is a book called 18th & Early 19th-Century Brewing sold by www.Townsends.US.

 

[Yesfan]

Somewhat related........but if you haven't, I watched (more or less) all the episodes of The Beer Hunter with Michael Jackson (no, not that Michael Jackson). It's a pretty old series from the late 80s I believe. Pretty interesting how the beer culture was back then compared to today.

 

[Cat Assistant Brewery]

Somewhat related........but if you haven't, I watched (more or less) all the episodes of The Beer Hunter with Michael Jackson (no, not that Michael Jackson). It's a pretty old series from the late 80s I believe. Pretty interesting how the beer culture was back then compared to today.

Good to know! I wish there were more shows and documentaries about beer. Only ones I have really checked out is Beer Wars which more about the business of beer and what you can find of Brewmaster show from Discovery.

 

[friarsmith]

I stumbled across this at the library several months ago. Part history, part soap opera, a revealing synopsis of the Busch family and the inner workings of AB. Loved it.

 

[kevin58]

Good to know! I wish there were more shows and documentaries about beer. Only ones I have really checked out is Beer Wars which more about the business of beer and what you can find of Brewmaster show from Discovery.

The one thing to be wary of from the Michael Jackson books and/or interviews is that newer research has rendered obsolete some of what he had to say about beer/beer styles/beer history.

 

[Yesfan]

The one thing to be wary of from the Michael Jackson books and/or interviews is that newer research has rendered obsolete some of what he had to say about beer/beer styles/beer history.

Agreed. A lot has changed since he's passed away. (2007?)

I still liked the show. The video quality isn't all that great, but I still found it entertaining. I grew up in the 80s, so that might play a lot into it.