Finally, there#x19;s a book that#x19;s almost as much fun as having a couple of drinks. Alcoholica Esotericapresents the history and culture of booze as told by a writer with a knack for distilling all the boring bits into the most interesting facts and hilarious tales. It#x19;s almost like pulling up a stool next to the smartest and funniest guy in the bar. Divided into chapters covering the basic booze groups#x14;including beer, wine, Champagne, whiskey, rum, gin, vodka, and tequila#x14; Alcoholica Esotericacharts the origin and rise of each alcohol#x19;s particular charms and influence. Other sections chronicle #x1C;Great Moments in Hic-story,#x1D; #x1C;Great Country Drinking Songs,#x1D; #x1C;10 Odd Laws,#x1D; and #x1C;Mt. Lushmore, Parts I#x13;V.#x1D; Additionally, famous quotes on the joys and sorrows of liquor offer useful shots of advice and intoxicating whimsy. Did you know.

" that the word baris short for barrier? Yes, that#x19;s right#x14;to keep the customers from getting at all the booze. " that Winston Churchill#x19;s mother supposedly invented the Manhattan? " that the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock because the sailors on the Mayflowerwere running low on beer and were tired of sharing? " that you have a higher chance of being killed by a flying Champagne cork than by a poisonous spider? " that the Code of Hammurabi mandated that brewers of low-quality beer be drowned in it? " that beer was so popular with medieval priests and monks that in the thirteenth century they stopped baptizing babies with holy water and started using beer?.