Page 15 - Thirst Magazine Issue No. 3 Coffee & Tea
P. 15

A BUTLER’S GUIDE TO ENTERTAINING

                                                                                     BY NICHOLAS CLAYTON (2011)
                                                                       Flex your hosting muscles and throw the best soirees
                                                                       with detailed advice from professional English butler
                                                                       Clayton. Here’s some serious Downton Abbey-level
                                                                       etiquette, detailing everything to do with invitations,
                                                                      seating plans, place settings, serving food and drinks…
                                                                       enough to see you breeze your way through a casual
                                                                     afternoon tea or a massive dinner feast. Prepare to wow.


                                                                        HELLRAISERS: THE INEBRIATED LIFE AND
                                                                     TIMES OF RICHARD BURTON, PETER O’TOOLE,
                                                                            RICHARD HARRIS & OLIVER REED

                                                                                     BY ROBERT SELLERS (2008)
                                                                    Four men walk into a pub. Their names are Richard Burton,
                                                                    Richard Harris, Peter O’Toole, and Oliver Reed. They spend
                                                                     their lives indulging in the excesses of stardom (drunken
                                                                      binges, broken marriages, and orgies, oh my!), crossing
                                                                      paths with one another, and getting up to all manner of
                                                                    miscreant deeds. Let’s face it, some of the best stories come
                                                                                about when we’re off our faces.


                                                                                THE PDT COCKTAIL BOOK:
                                                                          THE COMPLETE BARTENDER’S GUIDE
                                                                          FROM THE CELEBRATED SPEAKEASY

                                                                                       BY JIM MEEHAN (2011)
                                                                      A book by one of the world’s most famous bartenders
                                                                      from one of the best bars in the world, Meehan lays out
                                                                     everything there is to know about New York’s renowned
                                                                      PDT. With over 300 recipes of all cocktails available at
                                                                      the bar, and details on bar design, tools and equipment
                                                                      – all lusciously illustrated by Chris Gall – this book is
                                                                            a Holy Grail for any serious cocktail fan.


                                                                                  A FILM ABOUT COFFEE

                                                                                  DIRECTED BY BRANDON LOPER (2014)
                                                                            Straight to the point from the start, this is
                                                                       a documentary about coffee – or, rather, as the film’s
                                                                       website aptly puts it, “a love letter to, and meditation
                                                                     on, specialty coffee.  It examines what it takes, and what
                                                                      it means, for coffee to be defined as ‘specialty.’” At only
                                                                      67 minutes long, the film acts like a travelogue, taking
                                                                        viewers on a journey from farms in Honduras and
                                                                    Rwanda, to coffee shops in far-removed metropolitan cities
                                                                      like Tokyo, Portland, and New York. Emotive scenes of
                                                                     farmers in Rwanda harvesting the cherries combine with
                                                                      still moments in a Japanese coffee shop, presenting an
                                                                       unfolding narrative without imposing one on them.
                                                                    It’s a movie for the coffee enthusiast, as it does not explore
                                                                     in much depth the technicalities of the industry. Director
                                                                    Loper describes it best when he says “No matter the quality
                                                                    of your cup, people who love coffee, love it. Coffee is about
                                                                     people, and people are what I’m interested in ultimately.”




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