Whiskey Distilled

A Populist Guide to the Water of Life

By: Heather Greene

Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert

In the populist tradition of Andrea Immer, New York City's first female whiskey sommelier translates today's hottest spirit for a new generation of imbibers Whiskey is in the midst of a huge renaissance. Ten years ago, the United States housed sixty-nine craft distillers; today, there are more than four hundred. Exports of Scotch whisky grew 12 percent just last year. Sales are skyrocketing, and specialty bars are popping up around the country, from New York City to Chicago to Houston. Yet whiskey drinkers - especially novices - are more confused than ever.

Over the past decade, whiskey expert Heather Greene has been bombarded with thousands of questions, including: Can I have ice in my whiskey? Why is it sometimes spelled "whisky"? What makes bourbon different? As New York City's first female whiskey sommelier, Greene introduces audiences to the spirit's charms and challenges the boys' club sensibilities that have made whiskey seem inaccessible, with surprising new research that shows the crucial importance of "nosing" whiskey. Through lively tastings, speaking engagements, and classes such as the popular "Whiskey as an Aphrodisiac," Greene has been demystifying whiskey the way Andrea Immer did wine a decade ago.

In this lively and authoritative guide, Greene teaches listeners about whiskey and encourages them to make their own evaluations. Peppered with wry anecdotes drawn from her unusual life - and including recipes for delicious cocktails by some of today's most celebrated mixologists - Whiskey Distilled will be enthusiastically greeted by the whiskey curious as well as by journeymen whiskey drinkers thirsty to learn more about their beloved tipple.

©2014 Heather Greene (P)2014 Gildan Media LLC

Critic reviews

"With every passing day, the peril of sounding like an idiot when talking about or even referring towhiskey grows. Don’t let it happen to you. You should know this stuff. With Whiskey Distilled, Heather Greene makes it easy for you. She makes it deeply enjoyable. And her comprehensive, essential guide to what you need to know about whiskey will make you want to start drinking whiskey immediately." (Anthony Bourdain)

Whisk(e)y Rocks!

Loved it. Lots of useful information. Unlike some of the reviewers, I liked the narration quite a bit.

Buy the hard copy, skip the audio!

What did you love best about Whiskey Distilled?

This book provides a great primer (not PRIME er, see comments below on narration) on whiskey, from how it's made to how to taste it to how to get started with your whiskey collection. I loved the content of this book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Whiskey Distilled?

Fascinating stuff about the importance of the nose in tasting, especially snippet on how whiskeys basically taste the same if one's nose is plugged.

Would you be willing to try another one of Tavia Gilbert’s performances?

Not unless I'm in the mood for a romance novel.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No.

Any additional comments?

The content of Ms. Greene's book is great. It has a fantastic introduction to whiskey tasting and making, with very helpful suggestions on how to nose and taste whiskey; how to build a bar; food and whiskey pairings, etc. But the narration...oh boy. Ms. Gilbert's tone is that of someone narrating a Jane Austen book, not one about whiskey. Seriously, parts of it are like listening to a romance novel. Nor does she appear to know much about the topic. I’m not saying she should be an expert like Ms. Greene in order to narrate, but she should at least have some familiarity with the topic – including pronunciation. I had to rewind to make sure I heard this right (wrong), but she actually pronounced “Ancient Age” as “Ancient Egg”. And Bardstown is now Bardston? Really? And doesn’t primer with a long “I” refer to paint? (Although it was sure helpful to have the proper pronunciation of Dutch cheese in there. “Mr. Darcy, do stay for some HOWduh and sherry!”) My advice: Skip the audiobook and pick up the hard copy. This soundtrack will drive you to drink.

Great Audio IF You Did Your Homework

For the reviews that state she talks about herself, well yeah she does and should. She is brilliant and knows the industry inside and out from the view on both sides of the pond. Again, do some homework. While this book was in development I'm sure she had to have been building her business Milam & Greene yet never alludes to it (By the way her bourbons are fantastic).

The reason I bought this audio is because I am hitting the Texas Bourbon Trail and one of the stops for us will be the M & G distillery. I researched Heather's background and was actually intrigued how a pianist went from working gig to gig to where she is now.

She does break down the basics of what bourbon and whiskey/whisky are, the history, how they are made and clears up MANY of the jargon, misconceptions and advertising tricks distillers use to get you to buy their bourbon.

Overall it's an easy listening, informative and enjoyable audio and NO you don't need to have the hard copy to enjoy. You can bookmark items if you wish but it's not really necessary. So jump in and enjoy.

On the rocks?

Overall, an excellent audio book! I gave the story four stars only because listening to cocktail ingredients being listed doesn't make for much fun... although it is nice to have the information. I would recommend this audio book to any new comer to the world of whiskey, or is it whiskey? I guess you're going to have to listen to find out!

new to whiskey

very informative I can't wait to try all of the whiskey she talked about probably have to do more research there is a wealth of knowledge in the

Physical copy better 😶

A physical copy of the book would have been better considering the way information in the latter chapters were presented.

Great for beginners

I just got into whisky and I’m a long time audible listener I blew through this book in a day while at work and I enjoyed the content and narration and learned a lot.

If your a beginner like me this book is interesting and informative

Excellent book for beginning Whisk(e)y drinkers

This is an excellent book for someone starting out wanting to learn about and tasting whisky. It is very informative. The author does a brief but very informative overview of just about every topic there is to learn about whiskey, from tasting techniques, common terminology, reading labels, distillery process, casks, etc. I opted for the audible version of this book because I tend to spend most of my time driving. However, I will actually be purchasing the text because there is so much information I want to read over as well as recipes to try. The book kept me interested and even further excited me to continue to pursue my knowledge in whiskey.

Whiskey 411

great book! a must read for whisk(e)y lovers new or old. everything you need to know when venturing off into your new found passion is layed out perfectly. The book provided great insight on how to choose your perfect whiskey regardless of price or hype.

Must read for anyone who enjoys and Wine or spirit

I have read this book about 8 times and recommended to all of my friends who are serious about what the taste and the best way to get the most out of any bottle.