Guinness: The 250 Year Quest for the Perfect Pint

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

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

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.

Review :
"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)