Book Whiskey: Impossible collection by Assouline

Description

Whether served neat, on the rocks, or mixed in a cocktail, whiskey is often considered the best spirit in the world. On paper, it may look like a simple concoction – water and grains, fermented by yeast, then aged in a wooden barrel – but there is much more to whiskey than its physical ingredients. In the Middle Ages, Europeans called it aqua vitae, or “water of life,” a name that speaks to the cultural, social and historical significance of this spirit.

In The Impossible Collection of Whiskey, bestselling spirits writer Clay Risen uncovers the history of this storied drink, inviting the reader to tour some of the world's most famous distilleries and their finest bottles. From the finest Scottish Highland Scotch to the finest Kentucky Bourbon, Risen's selection of 100 unrivaled whiskeys comes from centuries-old makers as well as pioneers of the craft distilling movement that has swept the globe. Here are whiskeys selected not only for their exquisite flavor, but also for their rarity, age, flavor and innovation. Bottles from countries with burgeoning whiskey markets, like India and the Czech Republic, sit alongside old American classics like Pappy Van Winkle and some of the rarest and most coveted bottles on the market. Wonders resurrected in front of bottles like Ireland's Midleton Very Rare 45 Year Old, the oldest and most expensive Irish whiskey in the world. Together, these 100 bottles make up a collection of whiskeys so exclusive that no one could ever put them all together under one roof. A must-have for any true whiskey connoisseur's library, The Impossible Collection of Whiskey is a carefully crafted homage to a liquor long revered as "the water of life."

Presented in a wrought-iron carved wooden box inspired by an authentic whiskey barrel, this addition to Assouline's best-selling Impossible collection may well be her most remarkable volume published to date.

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