100 extraordinary eaux-de-vie, liqueurs, and spirits

Here is the fabulous history and astonishing geography of distillation, but also of infusion and maceration of plants.Truculent expert and taster of exceptional wines, Pierre Chevrier has established an ideal collection of 100 emblematic bottles of eaux-de-vie and liqueurs from around the world. With 40% of the world's population consuming rice, sake also has its place in these pages and has nothing to envy from the best eaux-de-vie made from wine lees. The choice of bottles, quite personal, and often linked to encounters or the adventures of their acquisition, was established based on organoleptic criteria, rarity, the aesthetics of the container, and the quality of the label graphics. To best explore this vast universe with poorly defined borders, the collection is complemented by an encyclopedia of distilled, fermented, and macerated beverages from yesterday and today. An indispensable book for understanding how eaux-de-vie and liqueurs have always marked their era. Some excerpts: absinthe, bas-armagnac, bénédictine, anisette, Bonal, calvados, cognac, yellow and green chartreuses, Tarragona and VEP, eaux-de-vie of apricot, pear, plum, mirabelle, quince, strawberry, raspberry, holly, elderberry, rosehip, juniper, Dantzig water, Damassine, génépi liqueur, fine Burgundy from the Romanée-Conti estate, fine champagne, grappa, gin, tar, kirsch, liqueur from the Alps, abricotine, marc from Burgundy, Martini & Rossi, Noilly Prat, picon, Peppermint, rum, sakes, tequila, umeshu, Veritable Swedish, Verveine Galland, vodka, Scottish whisky Blend Pattison 19th century, Irish whiskey Old Bushmills 1930, American whiskey Doughertys from the prohibition era, Japanese whiskies, zlota woda, etc.