Guinness: The 250 Year Quest for the Perfect Pint

by Bill Yenne

Overview

A perfectly poured history of the world's greatest beer.

"Joseph Conrad was wrong. The real journey into the Heart of Darkness is recounted within the pages of Bill Yenne's fine book. Guinness (the beer) is a touchstone for brewers and beer lovers the world over. Guinness (the book) gives beer enthusiasts all the information and education necessary to take beer culture out of the clutches of light lagers and back into the dark ages. Cheers!"
-Sam Calagione, owner, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and author of Brewing Up a Business, Extreme Brewing, and Beer or Wine?

"Marvelous! As Bill Yenne embarks on his epic quest for the perfect pint, he takes us along on a magical tour into the depths of all things Guinness. Interweaving the tales of the world's greatest beer and the nation that spawned it, Yenne introduces us to a cast of characters worthy of a dozen novels, a brewery literally dripping with history, and-of course-the one-and-only way to properly pour a pint. You can taste the stout porter on every page."
-Dan Roam, author of The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780470120521
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	10/05/2007
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Bill Yenne has been writing extensively about beer and brewing history for two decades and has discussed these subjects as a featured guest on the History Channel. He is the author of more than forty books on a variety of historical topics, and a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors.

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Table of Contents

Notes on Measurements and Terminology vii

Acknowledgments viii

Prologue: The World’s Greatest Beer ix

Introduction: What Is Guinness Stout? xiii

1 Origins 1

2 Arthur Guinness, Brewer 11

3 A Family Business 25

4 Generations and Dynasties 35

5 Bottlers and the Export Trade 43

6 Building Sales While Building Rails 49

7 A Public Company 55

8 The Guinness World Travellers 65

9 To the Ends of the Earth, and Manchester, Too 75

10 War at Home and Abroad 81

11 Trouble, Triumph, and the Toucan 87

12 Brewed in Britain and America, Too 103

13 World War II 111

14 The Postwar Years 119

15 Great Men and Great Ideas 129

16 A Family Business at Two Hundred 137

17 Nitrogenation, the Really Great Idea 145

18 A Lager Called Harp 151

19 Into Africa, Malaysia, and Beyond 155

20 Diversification and Expansion 165

21 The Watershed Decade 171

22 A Widget in the Pint 187

23 A Growing Company and the Perfect Pint 193

24 Guinness in the Twenty-First Century 205

25 Inside the Gate with the Master Brewer 215

Epilogue: The World’s Greatest Beer 225

Appendix A: Generations of the Guinness Family in the Leadership of the Family Business 229

Appendix B: Guinness Head Brewers 233

Bibliography 237

About the Author 239

Index 241

What People are Saying About This

"Joseph Conrad was wrong. The real journey into the Heart of Darkness is recounted within the pages of Bill Yenne's fine book. Guinness (the beer) is a touchstone for brewers and beer lovers the world over. Guinness (the book) gives beer enthusiasts all the information and education necessary to take beer culture out of the clutches of light lagers and back into the dark ages. Cheers!"
—Sam Calagione, owner, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and author of Brewing Up a Business, Extreme Brewing, and Beer or Wine?

"Marvelous! As Bill Yenne embarks on his epic quest for the perfect pint, he takes us along on a magical tour into the depths of all things Guinness. Interweaving the tales of the world's greatest beer and the nation that spawned it, Yenne introduces us to a cast of characters worthy of a dozen novels, a brewery literally dripping with history, and—of course—the one-and-only way to properly pour a pint. You can taste the stout porter on every page."
—Dan Roam, author of The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures

Editorial Reviews

"This book is telling of the legends of Guinness - the stout, the men and the mythology."  (Retail & Leisure International, December 2007)

"...should be on the shelf of anyone who professes to want to learn more about the last 250 years of brewing"  (What's Brewing, December 2007)

"...an absorbing tale, brilliantly handled."  (New Imbiber, December 2007)

"This is a thoroughly enjoyable, complete chronicle of a great been business."  (World Business, December 2007)

From the Publisher