Dead Distillers: A History of the Upstarts and Outlaws Who Made American Spirits

The founders of Brooklyn's King's County Distillery weave together stories of folks famous and forgotten who played roles in the American spirits industry. Beginning with accounts of colonial-era efforts, they move on to include a long string of notable distillers, among them several US Presidents. A morbid strain runs through the book as the authors produce numerous accounts of ghastly deaths related to distilling, including children scalded in vats of swill, workers overcome by vapors or blown to smithereens by exploding equipment, and passersby drowned in floods unleashed by burst tanks. A helpful chart attempts to trace the separate origins and consolidation of many American distilleries over the last 250 years. Black-and-white photographs. Hardcover.