The Book of Gin

“An absorbing popular history of one of history’s most popular drinks.” — Booklist   Gin has been a drink of kings infused with crushed pearls and rose petals, and a drink of the poor flavored with turpentine and sulfuric acid. Born in alchemists’ stills and monastery kitchens, its earliest incarnations were juniper flavored medicines used to prevent plague, ease the pains of childbirth, and even to treat a lack of courage.   In The Book of Gin , Richard Barnett traces the life of this