Take a spirited tour of the distilleries of Canada with award-winning, bestselling authors Stephen Beaumont and Christine Sismondo. Featuring over 75 colour photos, Canadian Spirits provides thirsty readers with reviews of spirits and the distilleries in which they are produced, as well as the history of Canada's distilling industry. Raise a glass with this cross-Canada roadmap to exploring craft spirits.
Davin de Kergommeaux takes readers on a journey through the first systematic presentation of Canadian whisky: how it's made, who makes it, why it tastes the way it does, its history, and the rich, centuries-old folklore surrounding it. Join whisky authority Davin de Kergommeaux on a pan-Canadian journey from British Columbia to Nova Scotia, celebrating the diversity of Canada's unique spirit. With his conversational and accessible tutelage, de Kergommeaux offers readers a carefully researched, reliable, and authoritative guide to Canadian whisky that is, quite simply, not available anywhere else. Not only a book describing the history and culture of the spirit, Canadian Whisky: The Portable Expert is also an informed exploration of taste. For the first time, whisky consumers -- experts and novices alike -- can approach Canadian whisky with a connoisseur's appreciation of its rich subtleties.
For over 1500 years, the Sayisi Dene, 'The Dene from the East', led an independent life, following the caribou herds and having little contact with white society. In 1956, an arbitrary government decision to relocate them catapulted the Sayisi Dene into the 20th century. It replaced their traditional nomadic life of hunting and fishing with a slum settlement on the outskirts of Churchill, Manitoba. Inadequately housed, without jobs, unfamiliar with the language or the culture, their independence and self-determination deteriorated into a tragic cycle of discrimination, poverty, alcoholism and violent death. By the early 1970s, the band realized they had to take their future into their own hands again. After searching for a suitable location, they set up a new community at Tadoule Lake, 250 miles north of Churchill. Today they run their own health, education and community programs. But the scars of the relocation will take years to heal, and Tadoule Lake is grappling with the problems of a people whose ties to the land, and to one another, have been tragically severed. In Night Spirits, the survivors, including those who were children at the time of the move, as well as the few remaining elders, recount their stories. They offer a stark and brutally honest account of the near-destruction of the Sayisi Dene, and their struggle to reclaim their lives. It is a dark story, told in hope.
In 1957, Farley Mowat shipped out aboard one of Newfoundland’s famous coastal steamers, tramping from outport to outport along the southwest coast. The indomitable spirit of the people and the bleak beauty of the landscape would lure him back again and again over the years. In the process of falling in love with a people and a place, Mowat also met the woman who would be the great love of his life. A stunningly beautiful and talented young artist, Claire Wheeler insouciantly climbed aboard Farley’s beloved but jinxed schooner as it lay on the St. Pierre docks, once again in a cradle for repairs, and changed both their lives forever. This is the story of that love affair, of summers spent sailing the Newfoundland coast, and of their decision to start their life together in Burgeo, one of the province’s last remaining outports. It is also an unforgettable portrait of the last of the outport people and a way of life that had survived for centuries but was now passing forever. Affectionate, unsentimental, this is a burnished gem from an undiminished talent. I was inside my vessel painting the cabin when I heard the sounds of a scuffle nearby. I poked my head out the companionway in time to see a lithesome young woman swarming up the ladder which leaned against Happy Adventure’s flank. Whining expectantly, the shipyard dog was endeavouring to follow this attractive stranger. I could see why. As slim and graceful as a ballet dancer (which, I would later learn, was one of her avocations), she appeared to be wearing a gleaming golden helmet (her own smoothly bobbed head of hair) and was as radiantly lovely as any Saxon goddess. I invited her aboard, while pushing the dog down the ladder. “That’s only Blanche,” I reassured my visitor. “He won’t bite. He’s just, uh . . . being friendly.” “That’s nice to know,” she said sweetly. Then she smiled . . . and I was lost. —From Bay of Spirits
The BC Spirits Cocktail book is the combination of a province wide guide book to the burgeoning distillery culture as well as an indepth and creative cocktail book. Showcasing the stories behind the distilleries, the people that run them and the spirits they make and how to use them in inventive and tasty cocktails.
An examination of the role of windigo narratives among the Algonquian peoples of North American and how those narratives were influenced through colonialism.
Using the basic economic principle of making decisions using a cost-benefit framework—and how changes in one or the other can result in a different decision—this book uncovers how various groups responded to incentives provided by the Prohibition legislation. Using this calculus, it is clear that even criminals are rational characters, responding to incentives and opportunities provided by the 18th Amendment and the Volstead Act. The book begins with a broad look at the adaptations of the law’s targets: the wine, beer, and liquor industries. It then turns to specific people (Violators, Line Tip-Toers, Enablers, and Hypocrites), sharing their stories of economic adaptation to bring economic lessons to life. Due to its structure, the book can be read in parts or as a whole and is suitable for short classroom reading assignments or individual pleasure reading.
An exhilarating page-turner set in 1920s Vancouver post prohibition, when liquor was the fuel driving big business, big government—and major crime. In this spellbinding follow-up to his mystery The White Angel, John MacLachlan Gray captures the spirit of Vancouver in those gritty, gin-soaked days, as the city was remaking itself between wars. Alcohol is once again legal in Vancouver after the failed experiment of prohibition, but pro-temperance sentiments remain strong. Politicians like Attorney-General Gordon Cunning attempt appeasement by establishing the Liquor Control Board, which oversees supply, from the lofty circles of power down to bleak public drinking factories called “beer parlours.” But when Cunning is found deceased, an empty martini glass at his side, quickly followed by Mrs. Harlan Crombie, the wife of a prominent bureaucrat, who falls dead after an afternoon book club meeting, suspicions are raised. Is it pure coincidence that the deceased were both drinking the same brand of “tonic”? Or is it a spillover from American prohibition, where deliberately tainted booze is killing thousands? Fans of The White Angel will be delighted by the return of straight-shooting constable Calvin Hook, frustrated poet-cum-reporter Ed McCurdy and unpredictable, eavesdropping telephone operator Mildred Wickstram, as they pool their skills in order to get to the truth. The result is a clash between temperance activists, the Klu Klux Klan, the Liquor Control Board and global events on the mean streets of Vancouver—a rough little city on the edge of empire.
You are invited to join in appreciating this family of noble beverages, step-by-step, flavor-by-flavor Would you like to better appreciate fine distilled spirits? Whiskey & Spirits For Dummies is your complete guide to selecting and enjoying this family of noble beverages, flavor by flavor. From whiskey, rum, and brandy to vodka, gin, and cordials, this handy reference traces the history of distilled spirits, explains how they are made, and shows you how to evaluate, serve, and savor them. Ever wonder why the Irish spell it “whiskey” and the Scottish “whisky”? This friendly book tells you as it reveals where the first whiskeys — or “dark” spirits — originated and how they came to the United States. It also explores the origins of clear spirits and the different varieties of each. You’ll compare American and European vodkas, see how to make the new and improved all-purpose Martini, and follow the spread of flavored rums across the globe. A slew of sidebars give you fascinating tidbits of information about these spirits. You’ll also discover how to: Become a sophisticated taster Shop for the best spirits Select the right mixers Use spirits in cooking Make ten classic cocktails Choose and taste cordials and liqueurs Know the nutrients in one serving of each type of distilled spirit Present spirits to guests Set up tasting events at home This thorough guide also features recipes for cooking with spirits, offering menu choices such as entrees, vegetables, and desserts that all include at least one type of spirit. Complete with an appendix of craft distillers across the United States, Whiskey & Spirits For Dummies will give you the knowledge and hands-on guidance you need to become a connoisseur of such greats as fine Scotch, Bourbon, and Cognac in no time!
