BOOK REVIEW: THE BOTANY OF BEER: AN ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO MORE THAN 500 PLANTS USED IN BREWING

BY JOHN BRAUER

The book landed on my desk with a heavy thud. It is over 640 pages and hard-cover, so it presents itself as what is claimed to be the most comprehensive and beautifully illustrated compendium discussing the use of a wide variety of plants in brewing. The author, Giuseppe Caruso, has collated accurate scientific descriptions of over 500 plants, replete with lots of information about each plant’s application in beer making, its toxicity (if any) and including a short list of beer styles. The book represents a translation from the original Italian. Upon further reading, one gets the impression that the author has been guided mainly by the principle that many, if not most, plants could be used in the brewing of beer, but whether these would contribute favourably to flavour or extract he often leaves unmentioned. The focus is on a list of which plants could be used in brewing, rather than what is being used or what has actually been documented for commercial brewing in the past, though the reference section is impressive and shows that the author is very well aware of the use of such plants in the brewing literature and in academic research. In this aspect, his knowledge and enthusiasm are an obvious asset. To my mind, the recommended beer style guides that accompanies each plant’s description seems a bit arbitrary, as there are no explanations as to practical brewing advice. Learning about descriptors imparting what kind of flavour notes, about ease or difficulty of gelatinisation or indeed, mash separation or filterability, and other technological factors to consider, would have been helpful to those wishing to emulate the experience. Perhaps all those plants could have been grouped into two broad divisions right at the start; those that are used for delivering fermentable extract, and those that are primarily used as flavourants in terms of resin, spice, herbaceous sensations, or fruitiness. To summarise, this is undoubtedly a carefully researched book of great botanical value; the comment I would make is that it’s more a botanical reference work, rather than a hands-on book a practical brewer would pick up to explore the multifaceted world of brewing with alternative ingredients.

The Botany of Beer – An illustrated Guide to More Than 500 Plants Used in Brewing Author: Giuseppe Caruso (Foreword by Marika Josephson) 640 pages; Columbia University Press / New York. ISBN 978-0-231-20158-2