The Essential Scratch &; Sniff Guide to Becoming a Whiskey Know-It-All: Know Your Booze Before You Choose

Whiskey fever is sweeping the world. Every day, craft distilleries are popping up in remote counties and urban centers, offering a wealth of great choices to consumers and just as many puzzlements. Does the introduction of a simple "e" to go from whisky to whiskey mean anything? What's the difference between Scotch and Rye? What's Canadian whisky anyway? And what about the whiskeys of Scotland, Japan, and Ireland? Where's a humble Joe to start? In this witty kid style book on an adult topic, Richard Betts boils down his know how into twenty pages, cooling our ''brown-sweat" anxieties and dividing whiskey into three simple categories - Grain, Wood, and Place. While most whiskey tomes are about as fun as a chemistry lesson, Betts makes the learning slide down easy, reassuring us that this exalted spirit is just distilled beer and, through a nasal romp, helping us figure out which kinds we love best. Humorous illustrations and scratch-and-sniff scents (vanilla, sandalwood, grass, and more) help would be connoisseurs learn their personal preferences. Language label and Map to Your Desires included.