Every great drink starts with a plant. Sake began with a grain of rice. Scotch emerged from barley. Gin was born from a conifer shrub when medieval physicians boiled juniper berries with wine to treat stomach pain. The Drunken Botanist uncovers the surprising botanical history and fascinating science and chemistry of over 150 plants, flowers, trees, and fruits (and even a few fungi). Some of the most extraordinary and obscure plants have been fermented and distilled, and they each represent a unique cultural contribution to global drinking traditions and our history. Molasses was an essential ingredient of American independence when outrage over a mandate to buy British rather than French molasses for New World rum-making helped kindle the American Revolution. Captain James Cook harvested the young, green tips of spruce trees to make a vitamin C-rich beer that cured his crew of scurvy--a recipe that Jane Austen enjoyed so much that she used it as a plot point in Emma. With over fifty drink recipes, growing tips for gardeners, and advice that carries Stewart's trademark wit, this is the perfect listen for gardeners and cocktail aficionados alike.

Portrait

Amy Stewart is the author of several books, including the historical fiction Kopp Sisters series, which began with Girl Waits with Gun. The series is based on the true story of three remarkable sisters who lived in New Jersey in the early twentieth-century. She has also written six nonfiction books on the perils and pleasures of the natural world, including the international bestsellers The Drunken Botanist, Wicked Bugs, Wicked Plants, and Flower Confidential. She is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship and the American Horticultural Society's 2010 Book Award. She lives in Portland with her husband Scott Brown, a rare book dealer. They own an independent bookstore called Eureka Books, which is so independent that it lives in California while they live in Oregon.