Required Reading for Wet (and Dry) Political Scientists

History. Politics. Illicit booze. Daniel Okrent may have written Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition (paperback) just for me. Mr. Okrent brilliantly weaves history, culture, politics with wit, intelligence, and humor to provide the definitive tome on Prohibition.* The book starts in the pre-prohibition era covering just how awash in booze the country was in the early 20th century. The story gets particularly interesting when the dry movement starts gathering momentum. The various stakeholders that come together to get the 18th amendment passed is almost mind boggling - drys, women suffragists, immigration opponents (yep, we've hated immigrants almost from the beginning), creation of the income tax and even the Klan. Overturning 18 was not quite as politically riveting but is a good story nonetheless; particularly given how insurmountable that mountain appeared. There were indeed opponents to the 21st amendment, not the least of which were the gangs and bootleggers enjoying a tax free, unregulated enterprise.

More than anything the book is a lesson in political achievement led by one Wayne B. Wheeler. Today we have Karl Rove. Karl Rove is no Wayne Wheeler. The defacto leader of the Anti-Saloon League (ASL), Mr. Wheeler was a master of the political process. Last Call goes to great lengths to show how Mr. Wheeler effectively controlled Congress in the realm of liquor. He was adept at knowing where the ASL should put its support and what issues were not worth fighting. Through Wheeler, the ASL supported candidates who supported Prohibition. The ASL was allied with other groups that supported the Prohibition cause. Wheeler, and the ASL, focused on one agenda and made no judgement of candidates with views on other social, political, or moral issues. Because of his political acuity, the ASL stayed away from some debates after passage of the Volstead act. For example, Wheeler wisely stayed away from the debate about funding federal enforcement of Prohibition. From the book: "Wheeler, familiar as he was with every hillcock and valley on the political landscape, had early on recognized the prevailing resistance to government spending. Wheeler told Morris Sheppard that five million dollars would be a sufficient appropriation for all federal enforcement of Prohibition (by way of comparison, the sum wouldn't even have covered the payroll of Columbia University that year)."

Western New Yorkers should have an interest if only to learn more about John J. Raskob. Mr. Raskob was born in Lockport, NY and played an integral part in overturning the 18th amendment. Raskob worked for Pierre du Pont first at General Motors. He was a major player in politics serving as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Mr. Raskob's more impressive work in repealing Prohibition would make anybody from the greater Buffalo-Niagara area proud. Oh, he also apparently sold his GM stock to build the Empire State Building and penned the obviously titled article "Everybody Ought to be Rich".

Last Call should also encourage locals to learn more about the area's role during the 13 dry years of Prohibition. The book references massive deaths from wood alcohol originating in Buffalo. Further, Mr. Okrent spends many pages discussing the important relationship between Canada and Detroit, MI in getting illicit liquor into the country and distributing it across the Midwest. In fact, the booze flowed freely from various maple leaf points into the states. One can't help but wonder about Buffalo's role given it's own proximity to the border - there's your next book Mr. Okrent.

So, there you have it. Politics, history, local boy makes good, and booze. Read this book; with a cold beer close by.

*Strictly the opinion of the author who is not an historian or even really sure what a tome is.

I'm on Fire

Nestled comfortably between the Baby Boomers and the Millenials/Generation Y is Generation X. As part of this heroin-induced flannel party, I'm old enough to have settled down by getting married, having children, and gambling a large portion of wealth building in homeownership. I'm also young enough to not quite adhere to all the rules that result in career advancement but that's probably a good thing. Gen-X loves Clerks, knows the soundtrack for Singles but never saw the movie, and still loves Alice in Chains.

The hardest part about being Generation X is understanding the new world. I like to think that 100 years ago flappers had the same problem. The industrial revolution was in bloom and full of promise but most folks from 1912 presumably looked back fondly of their time growing up on the farm. In 2012, I'm living the Office Space dream looking fondly back on growing up in a blue collar city where manufacturing was, and still is, the primary economic engine.

Being stuck between two colossal populations is not necessarily a bad thing. Well, except that the Baby Boomers refuse to retire so Gen-X is a decade away from moving into the "good life" that is middle management. Most of us are relegated to a couple of steps above entry level waiting for opportunity to knock. Of course, opportunity will never knock because when the Boomers retire (or die) Gen-X will compete for slots with Millenials who are more eager, less hardened by life, and more accepting of the new world (not to mention their generation is not defined by slackers). Generation X is probably the last great rebellion but the bulk of us are resolved to nothing more than setting up our children to ensure they kick Millenials in the ass.

Technology is perhaps the best illustration of this dynamic. Baby boomers hate technology. (Everybody knows one Boomer who spends too much time on Facebook but this is simply the exception that proves the rule.) Most Boomers have the expendable income for the latest iPad but use it as little more than a glorified web browser. Millenials are the opposite. Technology is for them what the automobile was to young WWII veterans returning home to southern California. Those of us stuck in the middle understand technology's power and power is not necessarily a good thing. Gen-X is a generation of skeptics so we're still waiting for technology to be as great as Verizon Wireless commercials advertise. At the same time we have access to more wonders than ever previously imagined. This is to say nothing of privacy; which is dead.

My kids are already more advanced than both of their parents. At 2.5 years of age they easily find their way through a smart phone to find their favorite Muppets videos. In an effort to encourage the early adoption of technology that will lead to the eventual ass kicking we purchased the Kindle Fire. I was not surprised they liked it. I'm surprised that I like it. The Fire traveled with me on a recent work trip and made quite a companion. Reading books on the Fire is quite nice (except for take off and landing) and videos are wonderful. Note: if you purchase the Fire sign yourself up with Amazon Prime.

Why Beer Matters by Evan Rail is a great first read for the Fire. It's a bit of an easy read and too predictably gets into the beer v. wine debate. Mr. Rail makes a compelling statement that beer is democratic and few other beverages are connected to time in the way beer is.  The e-book also has nuggets of beer information that would encourage any beer drinker to more research - like Starkbierzeit, which is now on my bucket list, or attempts to review Grodziskie; a Polish smoked-wheat beer that went out of existence in the early 1990s and has been nearly impossible to recreate. Mr. Rail brilliantly ends it with "what matters most about beer is the drinking of it."

So this entire, rambling post can be summarized with: 1) you should buy the Kindle Fire; 2) make Why Beer Matters your first read; and 3) enjoy a nice craft beer or homebrew.

Beer is Proof this book sucks

If we can sum up Beer is Proof God Loves Us in one word it's dreadful. Sure, it's an easy read filled with nuggets of beer trivia but Charles W. Bamforth comes across as admittedly "yearning for a better time."

Mr. Bamforth has quite a brewing pedigree. He's worked for some of the biggest and best breweries in the business. He's the Anheuser-Busch Endowed Professor of Malting Brewing Sciences at UC Davis and he's taught courses in more countries we've visited. Finally, Beer is Proof God Loves Us is just the latest of his publications. So, at the end of the day we're in no real position to judge. Then again, we're in no position to judge beer and we do that all the time. And we judge people like we're searching for the next American Idol.

The opening chapter, Global Concerns, is the most informative. It offers a brief overview of how the big brewing conglomerates got so, well big. The book goes downhill from there. Mr. Bamforth blames Margaret Thatcher for much of what's wrong in England's brewing industry, gives a begrudging nod to craft brews while never missing an opportunity to boast on the great beers made by the biggest of brewers, quotes Emerson and talks religion. According to the author, the endnotes are worth the read but we cut our losses at the final chapter.

We can all agree that beer really is proof that god loves us but that hardly seems the central focus of the book primarily because the book lacks central focus. Beer's ties to religion certainly is not the theme of the book. Although it's discussed towards the end of the book it's included in an awkward discussion around religious ties to conflict and the author's time spent in the Middle East. Other pages touch on the role of homebrewing and neo-prohibitionists to ensure we cover the full spectrum of the brew topics. It might be a meandering stream of conscious writing or a series of chapters left out of other books and looking for a home. Either way, you'll certainly learn something and you probably should read the endnotes - but that's about all you should read.

Oh, and Benjamin Franklin never said "beer is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy".

We're Hoping for a Long Life

In our never ending quest to ride the cutting edge of brewing news we bring you a new series: The Dumbarton Lit Review. We're kicking of the Lit Review with a little birthday gift from our trusty assistant.





Title: 1001 Beers You Must Taste Before You Die

Author: Adrien Tierney-Jones*

Year: 2010

Publisher: Quintessence

The Review: 1001 Beers is not the type of book you read like a novel - cover to cover, chapter by chapter. No, this is a book you peruse and review over the long-term.

The first thing you will do is read through the 945 pages of beers to find the ones you already tasted. After finding you've tried all of 6 of the 1001 beers the second thing you will do is promise yourself you will taste every beer in the book. Finally, you will reach the acceptance stage and simply hope to taste as many as you can track down.

The book weighs in at about 10 lbs and comes with some great imagery. There is a brief description of each beer, including tasting notes. We assume only the really good beers get a full page spread.

If you fancy yourself a beer connoseur this is a must have. If you're not into beer, Quintessence seems to have made a living on the 1001 series. So, there's 1001 movies to see, books to read, albums to hear, well you get the point. Seriously, start with the beers.








*In this case there is no author. Tierney-Jones is listed as the General Editor. In truth, there are 42 listed contributors to this brick.