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A History of the World in 6 Glasses

3.69 of 5 stars 3.69 · rating details · 4,853 ratings · 760 reviews

Throughout human history, certain drinks have done much more than just quench thirst. As Tom Standage relates with authority and charm, six of them have had a surprisingly pervasive influence on the course of history, becoming the defining drink during a pivotal historical period.

A History of the World in 6 Glasses tells the story of humanity from the Stone Age to the 21s...more

Paperback, 311 pages

Published May 16th 2006 by Walker & Company (first published June 1st 2005)

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Community Reviews

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Mar 10, 2013 Stefan Burrell rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book I've read twice. It takes you from the formation of beer and society in Mesopotamia, to the use of wine as currency and how wine types represented a social classification system in Greece and Rome. It went through spirits and colonial time: We only have whiskey because it took too long to ship scotch and brandy by wagon out west, so we made corn whiskey. To how coffee was at first banned in Muslim society and called black wine - tell they figured that it caused a different state of min...more

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Oct 15, 2009 Max rated it 3 of 5 stars

First off, let me just say that if the concept of this book interests you, by all means you should read it. It's light and breezy, and you stand to lose very little by taking the time. However, I have to say that my feelings about this book are very conflicted. In terms of quality, the book is clearly delineated into two halves: the half discussing alcoholic drinks, and the half discussing caffeinated drinks. Throughout the first portion of the book, which focuses on beer, wine, and spirits, I w...more First off, let me just say that if the concept of this book interests you, by all means you should read it. It's light and breezy, and you stand to lose very little by taking the time. However, I have to say that my feelings about this book are very conflicted. In terms of quality, the book is clearly delineated into two halves: the half discussing alcoholic drinks, and the half discussing caffeinated drinks. Throughout the first portion of the book, which focuses on beer, wine, and spirits, I was a bit bored, and found myself becoming frustrated at how repetitive Standage's writing could be. It seemed like there just wasn't enough substance to back up Standage's claims of how dramatically these beverages had impacted human history, and the facts and arguments he did provide were often repeated in subtly different ways throughout a given section. I was still interested in the material of this half of the book, I just didn't find it particularly compelling. The second half, by contrast, really delivered on the promise of the book's thesis, and it's pretty obvious why. Standage is an editor for The Economist, and it's clear reading this book that economics is what he feels most comfortable writing about. His discussions of the impacts of the British tea trade, in particular, were extremely interesting. Indeed, Standage finds it difficult to conceal his British biases, as the most in-depth and interesting parts of this book exclusively discuss British culture. The only thing that detracted from my enjoyment of the second half of this book was the way that Standage's own personal socioeconomic views seeped into the section on Coca-Cola, so that by the end it started reading like a pro-free-trade pamphlet. It's nothing that some good editing couldn't have fixed, and it left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth (ha, ha) as I finished the book. Still, overall, well worth the read, and it's certainly made me curious about a lot of aspects of history that I'd never even contemplated before.(less)

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May 25, 2007 Jonathan rated it 3 of 5 stars

6 Glasses zeroes in on six liquids--from beer in ancient Mesopotamia to wine and spirits to coffee and tea and finally to cola and the globalization of brands such as Pepsi and Coca-Cola--and targets each as being responsible (or at least culpable) for the shaping of cultures (quite likely), writing itself (quite possible), and industrialization (believable, especially in light of Coke).

Each of the libations receives its proper dues. The organization of the book itself is very well done, and the...more

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Aug 10, 2011 Stephen Wong added it

If you consider there is as wide a variety of drink as there is of religious experience, you would not be far off the mark professing a certain kind of fanaticism for your type of drink, be it gourmet coffee, some vintages, certain types of tea, the best beers, single malts, or ubiquitous soda pop. While the book establishes the historical view and social context of these drinks that have had and continue to have worldwide impact and in some cases the causes for upheaval, war and revolution, it...more

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May 04, 2013 Brian Bess rated it 3 of 5 stars

History from the point of view of its drinks

The premise of this book—the role that drinks played in the development of world civilizations—could be seen as a gimmick, albeit one that really does have some validity. Standage divides the eras of the world by the drinks that influenced the evolution of the cultures and political powers throughout the centuries—beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola.

Geographic and agricultural conditions essentially prompted the development of the first two...more History from the point of view of its drinks

The premise of this book—the role that drinks played in the development of world civilizations—could be seen as a gimmick, albeit one that really does have some validity. Standage divides the eras of the world by the drinks that influenced the evolution of the cultures and political powers throughout the centuries—beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola.

Geographic and agricultural conditions essentially prompted the development of the first two. Beer evolved in Mesopotamia and Egypt from leftover grains that had fermented. Although the ancient peoples may not have realized that brewing killed pathogens, they knew it was an uncontaminated beverage that was safe to drink. Agriculture flourished as the need for more grain to produce this appealing liquid increased, as well as the development of pottery as containers were needed to store the liquid. Drinking as a communal activity is illustrated by an ancient pictogram showing two figures drinking beer from a large pottery jar through straws. Wine evolved out of the grape-growing regions of Greece, Rome and other parts of Europe and became fashionable for Greek thinkers to drink while discussing philosophy as well as for Dionysian revels and Bacchanalian orgies. It became synonymous with intellectual development as well as religious ritual.

Standage does not deal with the social or cultural aspects of spirits other than to investigate the development of distillation and preservation that enabled international sales through shipping. It provided drinks for sailors and also provided a product such as rum in the West Indies that could be marketed and shipped.

Coffee became popular for many reasons, among which was that it was a sobering drink, through which one would not become more less functional; on the contrary, one’s thinking could actually be sharpened. Not surprisingly, it is equated with the age of reason. Standage finds that many of the great scientific discoveries in the seventeenth century originated in coffeehouses.

The evolution of tea as a drink originating in China and India but marketed by the British Empire is much more circuitous. The British East India Company’s role in bartering opium for tea with China and the convoluted route of transaction and exchange through which Britain could not be seen as a drug trafficker is a mind twister. Tea, as opposed to coffee, especially popular in male-only coffee houses, became as fashionable for women as men and the practice of tea parties and afternoon tea permeated all classes of British society, becoming part of the daily routine. Not surprisingly, Britain consumes more tea than any other nation on the planet.

The emergence of Coca-Cola is much more straightforward. Through a process of shrewd marketing and equation with American patriotism as well as global dominance, Coca-Cola has become ubiquitous internationally. In 1938, veteran journalist William Allen White declared it “a sublimated essence of all that America stands for, a decent thing honestly made, universally distributed, conscientiously improved with the years.” In World War II, special bottling plants were established inside military bases and distributed to soldiers. It was a morale booster and a reminder of the American freedom for which they were fighting. During the Cold War, it was specially prepared for closet admirer, Soviet military leader Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, without coloring so that it more closely resembled vodka, the traditional Russian drink. Through the ensuing years, Coca-Cola has become synonymous with globalization and American capitalism.

Standage’s epilogue focuses on the seventh drink, actually the basis for all the others: water. Bottled water has become very fashionable and profitable as it has been marketed as the pure alternative to contaminated water, ironically at a time when water purification and sanitation has improved to the point where most tap water is just as safe to drink as bottled water and much less expensive, rendering it as a lifestyle choice. Water is a prerequisite for human life and the future of the race will most certainly depend on the availability and safety of drinking water.

Standage makes some very valid points about the role that drinks played in how various civilizations evolved and rose or fell. I’m sure he oversimplifies to the extent of writing a palatable, digestible work of popular history that can be contained in under 300 pages. There are many areas of the world where he has neglected to tread but multiple volumes could be written on the role of drinks in human evolution. This will suffice for an illuminating ‘skim the surface’ look at some of the most prominent drinks that have proliferated through the centuries.

(less)

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Mar 27, 2013 Casey rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: knowledge-is-good, the-word-unctuous-is-over-rated, veridical

This book should really be called "A History of the Western World in 6 Glasses," as it doesn't consider the drinks of South America, Sub-Saharan Africa, Oceania, and much of Asia. Indeed, tea is considered only through the lens of the British empire, even though the formal Japanese tea service is arguably more interesting than a British tea party. Even as a Western history, it kind of fails, as there's a large gap between wine production in the Roman empire and the distillation of rum in Barbado...more

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Feb 11, 2013 Cheryl Gatling added it

This isn't exactly a history of the world told through the six drinks of beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and cola. It is really a history of the six drinks, and the ways they have influenced, and been influenced by, history. It was full of interesting tidbits, which I enjoyed as much, if not more, than the more sweeping historical trends. Ancient beer was drunk through a straw, for example, because if had bits of chaff and stuff floating in it. One of the Roman emperors, who tried to hide from...more This isn't exactly a history of the world told through the six drinks of beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and cola. It is really a history of the six drinks, and the ways they have influenced, and been influenced by, history. It was full of interesting tidbits, which I enjoyed as much, if not more, than the more sweeping historical trends. Ancient beer was drunk through a straw, for example, because if had bits of chaff and stuff floating in it. One of the Roman emperors, who tried to hide from his enemies in a poor man's house, was found out when the poor man bought some really good wine, for it was unthinkable that a high-class man would drink low-class wine, or vice versa. During WWII, Coca-Cola was exempt from sugar rationing, because serving Cokes to the soldiers was deemed essential to the war effort. I was surprised how much of the history I already knew. Beer was intimately associated with the move from a hunter-gathering society to the birth of agriculture. Some people theorize that desire to have beer was the number one motivator for people to settle down. You just couldn't have beer without a steady supply of grain, and then you had to store it, and then you had to keep an eye on it, and then there you were, a city-dweller. Wine's influence on history was in the development of trade, as wine grapes only grew in certain regions, but everyone wanted some. Wine fueled the Greek drinking parties where talk of philosophy and politics and literature helped to form the fundamental ideas of Western culture. Distilled spirits also fueled worldwide trade, especially the slave trade, and the development of the colonies. Coffee was the drink of the enlightenment, where coffee houses became centers of new scientific and political thought. The desire for tea led the British to cement the reach of their empire over the globe, and to mistreat the Chinese. Coca-Cola became associated with American servicemen overseas, and then a globally recognized product. That's the quick and dirty summary. The book ends by saying that water will be the important drink of the future, and wars will be fought over ensuring a safe and adequate supply. The final chapter of the book describes how a person can experience these six drinks as they were drunk in the past, for example, beer brewed without hops (a later addition), wine with additives, or diluted with water, as it was drunk in ancient Rome. Interestingly, the coffee drunk in enlightenment coffee houses is compared to office coffee that has been left on the burner all day. Overall, a fun read. (less)

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Jan 26, 2013 John Behle rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fun, interesting read

I found this to be a learning book. I have enjoyed all these drinks. Other times, I have been repulsed by each of these beverages. The famed six are beer, wine, coffee, tea, spirits and Coca-Cola. More than a history book, I found myself reflecting on why I have chosen each drink. The title is correct-we have all been shaped and touched by these beverages.

Tom Standage takes us on a did-you-know tour, as if each tea leaf, each keg of Caribbean rum, each 1890 Coke ad is under a glass dome in a mus...more

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Sep 09, 2012 Andy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pop non-fiction with clever gimmick of six beverages to summarize world history. Plenty of interesting factoids.

One problem is that the flip side of the cleverness of the gimmick is that all sorts of beverages are left out. The human consumption of animal milk, for example, is an interesting story with important implications but we don't learn about that.

Another problem is that the research does not appear to be very deep and so some of the factoids don't seem to be true. For example, tea is c...more

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Jun 16, 2012 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A toast to human enterprise! Pick your poison -- beer, wine, rum, tea, coffee, or Coca-Cola. Three are alcoholic, three are caffienated: all were the stuff of empires, and the story of those empires is one Tom Standage is intent on telling. He begins with beer and wine in Mesopotamia and Egypt and moves to wine in Greece and Rome. The focus then shifts to Europe and the rum-fueled Age of Discovery that saw European nations expand across the world and remake it in their image. While distilled spi...more A toast to human enterprise! Pick your poison -- beer, wine, rum, tea, coffee, or Coca-Cola. Three are alcoholic, three are caffienated: all were the stuff of empires, and the story of those empires is one Tom Standage is intent on telling. He begins with beer and wine in Mesopotamia and Egypt and moves to wine in Greece and Rome. The focus then shifts to Europe and the rum-fueled Age of Discovery that saw European nations expand across the world and remake it in their image. While distilled spirits ran the high seas, the intellectual minds of Europe stayed keen with coffee from Arabia. British and American imperialism are charted through Asian tea and Coca-Cola, respectively.

The result is light popular history that succeeds based on the author's lively tone and the perspective, which takes the lofty subject of World History and brings it down to the tavern table, supplying readers with both interesting tales about their beverage of choice as well as a greater appreciation for the role those drinks played in world history; some of the connections Standage reveals surprised even me. The importance of each drink varies; some are material, like the beer which was tied to agriculture, the basis of society, and the tea which drove British foreign policy and led to the opium wars. In the case of wine and coffee, the relevance is more ethereal: Standage champions wine-wet symposiums as an instrument of Greek excellence. The section on Coca-Cola is an odd duck, the only one to mention a brand name. Perhaps this is because Coca-Cola succeeded like no other brand, but it still sits oddly, and its chapters almost read like history with product placement. Standage is delightful to read, but his narrative isn't quite as thorough as I might have liked.There's no mention given to Coca-Cola's connection to the spread of fast food restaurants, for instance, though I had no idea how instrumental the Second World War was to its success.

Light, but fun; I'll probably be trying Standage's similar work, An Edible History of Humanity.

Related:
The Coffee Trader, David Liss
Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky
Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser
And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails, Wayne Curtis(less)

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Mar 15, 2012 Rachel Fisher rated it 5 of 5 stars

For more of my reviews go to www.rachelefisher.com

Title: A History of the World in 6 Glasses
Author: Tom Standage
Rating: 5 Stars

HA! I have found a way to combine my love of book review with my love of food blogging into one perfect amalgam - A History of the World in 6 Glasses. (Yes, the author does use the numeral '6' in the title grammar nazis, just deal with it.) Please just ignore the fact that I already did the same thing with The Ominvore's Dilemma post.

This book is NON-FICTION (horror of h...more For more of my reviews go to www.rachelefisher.com

Title: A History of the World in 6 Glasses
Author: Tom Standage
Rating: 5 Stars

HA! I have found a way to combine my love of book review with my love of food blogging into one perfect amalgam - A History of the World in 6 Glasses. (Yes, the author does use the numeral '6' in the title grammar nazis, just deal with it.) Please just ignore the fact that I already did the same thing with The Ominvore's Dilemma post.

This book is NON-FICTION (horror of horrors) and it is excellent. It is a well-researched musing on the role that beverages, of all things, have had on human history. By its conclusion I realized how little I'd considered the importance of beverages and how much I had missed in this oversight.

Over the years I have read a lot of non-fiction that has been informative, but few things have stuck with me the way that this one has done. I find myself thinking about it again and often picking it up to thumb through and re-read a passage. Of course, I've also given it away a lot for others to read and it is currently missing from my bookshelf, which is probably just as well. I have read it enough already.

It is a fast read and it is not bogged down by the usual 'history hysteria' that those who love the genre enjoy. And by this I mean the tendency of history buffs to drown the reader in an ocean of details that muddy his or her ability to really appreciate the overall meaning of the book. That is definitely not the case IMHO, with Standage's book.

He covers the historical discovery, usage, and influences of beer (and mead), wine, spirits, tea, coffee, and Coca-Cola. While you may have paid enough attention in history to realize that many of these beverages have been a part of human history for millenia, you may not have truly understood their impact (beyond tea, anyway...that one get's pounded into us as a former British colony...). Each one has had a significant impact on things like health, trade, communications, and even innovation.
What I Learned

Without giving away any spoilers, I learned that alcohol was actually 'better' for us than water (at one time long ago) and that tea and coffee represent a spiritual and philosophical divide, not just a preference. And finally, I learned that of all the drinks that have changed the world, the last is not to be underestimated: Coca-Cola.

If the last thing you've thought about in the past oh...forever, is the drink in your hand, I have to suggest this book. It makes the kind of book that one can enjoyably pick up on a whim and skim for a few minutes or sit down and read from start to finish. With a nice cup of -------something------ of course!(less)

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Jan 08, 2012 Brian Kelley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Beer. Wine. Liquor. Tea. Coffee. Coca-Cola.

In six individual essays, author Tom Standage explores the impact on politics, geography, and culture caused by each of these beverages.

Built on many vignettes of history, The History of the World in Six Glasses reads like a textbook comprised of well-polished and researched informative essays. I coudn't help but think that one section of this book will show up on an SAT someday. Even though the book is filled with bits of narrati...more

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Apr 20, 2011 Tom rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-and-drink, non-fiction, history

This books was a very interesting concept. Look at how six beverages are linked to various times and places in history. While the beer chapter lacked a bit for me, this may have been due to the fact that it was from the Neolithic Period, and lacked a lot of the excellent primary source material that Enlightenment coffee houses or rum drinking ship captains are accompanied by. Still it was a fascinating look at how civilization and drinks are linked. I wish it had better references and notes, but...more

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Feb 28, 2011 Christian Kitchen rated it 2 of 5 stars

Whoever the marketing guy was behind Erik Larson's "The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America," he was a genius. Because honestly, I don't really want to read a 447 page history of the Chicago World's Fair--and I'm guessing, neither do you. But, if you were hoodwinked into believing (as I was) that Larson's opus was an inspired bit of comparison between the architect of the 1893 World's Fair and a diabolically brilliant psychopath and kept reading b...more Whoever the marketing guy was behind Erik Larson's "The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America," he was a genius. Because honestly, I don't really want to read a 447 page history of the Chicago World's Fair--and I'm guessing, neither do you. But, if you were hoodwinked into believing (as I was) that Larson's opus was an inspired bit of comparison between the architect of the 1893 World's Fair and a diabolically brilliant psychopath and kept reading because you were waiting for the numerous opportunities Larson had to make this happen and then realized somewhere about two-thirds of the way through that he had perhaps added the bit about the serial killer because he realized that no one would probably read the book if it didn't have some sort of hook and then you noticed that Larson sort of pulled it off anyway and (just bear with me one more moment here) you realized years later that the passages you most remember in the book were these tremendously well crafted passages about the World's Fair itself juxtaposed with a noirish filth ridden Chicago, you might, like I did tonight, come to forgive the misrepresentation and accept the book as a rather brilliant historical narrative. So, thanks guy who wrote the jacket copy for Larson because you totally made me read the book and just like I lie to my son and tell him that spinach is pesto because he'll eat pesto, you lied to me and I was the better for it.

As for you Tom Standage, or whoever allowed you to waste as brilliant an idea as this, fuck you, and I think you need to take the excellent idea that could have been this book and put it back in the pool because you straight messed it up. Seriously, I want a full rewrite with a different author because I don't know how you take so tremendously focused an idea as tracing world civilization through its dominant beverages (beverages mind you that I have a close and deeply personal relationship with) and turn it into the kind of prose that I'm more familiar with from middle school history textbooks. You offered me a nicely aged single malt but what I got was a half pint of Borden chocolate milk with the seam that smells like the lunch lady.

That said--for keeping it brief and managing to remind me how good historical nonfiction can be when written by other authors--I applaud you. (1.5/5)(less)

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Sep 11, 2010 Sharri rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

I saw this in my sister's to-read list and, boy, am I glad! This was a really fun book to read.
For me.
It was not so fun for my husband, who was stuck sitting next to me and hearing, "Hey, listen to this --" and "Here's something interesting --". But now I'm done, so he can read all the little leftover bits where I managed to hold my tongue and let him enjoy his own book (which probably wasn't half so interesting).

The book attempts to tell the history of the world using six beverages that illus...more

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Feb 21, 2010 Moira Burke rated it 4 of 5 stars

"NPR discussed this last year on All Things Considered, and since then I'd been looking forward to reading it. Standage describes the influence of six beverages (beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and Coca-Cola) on world history. More than just in the Boston Tea Party, these drinks were integral to the movement of people, ideas, and industry, and each affected international policy in its own right. For example, beer and wine were originally consumed far more than water, because the fermentation k...more

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Oct 29, 2009 Perryville Library added it

Shelves: nonfiction, tony

A History of the World in Six Glasses, by Tom Standage, takes a novel approach to human history. Each era, from the first settlements to our modern globalized world, is marked by the consumption of a different drink. For most of history (and, sadly, even today) drinking water has been a risky prospect, often carrying fatal diseases and causing epidemics. The solution was human-created beverages that effectively killed illness causing microbes, and tasted better to boot. The book starts around 10...more

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Jun 17, 2009 Howie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've read history told through a story of the religions that were shaped in it. I've also seen history as told by the wars that were fought during it. But this clever author has told history through the six most prevalent drinks - beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and Coke.

With a clever enough author, one could probably tell history through almost anything. However, I think Standage makes some points that really stand on their own. To me, the most remarkable of these points was during the discus...more

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Feb 15, 2012 Jorge rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: history

A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage

“A History of the World in 6 Glasses” is a view of the history of the world through the lens of beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and cola. Science correspondent and accomplished author Tom Standage has come up with a clever book that shows how the aforementioned drinks were reflections of the eras in which they were created. This 311-page book is broken out by the six drinks (two chapters per drink): Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt, Wine in Greec...more

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Jul 25, 2012 Yune rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A breezy survey of how six beverages transformed the world: beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and cola. The writing style's extremely accessible -- while I was reading it, I was entertained and educated, but it's so easygoing that there's no compulsive narrative thread to stick to. Consequently, every time I put it down it would have to wait until I wandered back to that area and remembered it.

I was willing to be persuaded by how historical societies were shaped by these drinks, but this isn't a...more

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Feb 02, 2011 Valerie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: africa, cookbooks, half-the-sky, judge-a-book-by-its-title

In order not to forget, I'll update my review as I read each chapter. In the beer chapter the thing that struck me most was the author's contention that, since beer was originally consumed with straws out of communal vessels, that it served as a metaphor for being all connected. I suppose like sharing water to Heinlein's Martians. As a throwaway line he mentions that we clink our glasses together when we drink in celebration to signify that the drink is all from the same vessel. Worthy of consid...more

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May 05, 2013 Dan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Standage take six beverages: beer, wine, distilled liquors, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola, situates them in their historic eras and explains their cultural, economic and historic impact. It's a quick and entertaining read and you'll learn a lot of good trivia. Standage's hook is to tie each drink into a specific historic period- wine goes with the Greek and Roman Empires, coffee with the European Enlightenment, etc. While this is a convenient way to cover a lot of world history in a short book, in o...more

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Dec 14, 2011 Patricia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, 2011-lists

I'm about halfway through the book and have found it very interesting. I found out that the workers who built the pyramids were paid in beer. Marcus Aurelius had a personal physician who prescribed the very best wine for medicinal purposes. His medical practices have no basis in fact, but I doubt that Marcus Aurelius minded the doctor's orders. I also learned how grog got its name and that its because of the lime in grog that the British were first referred to as limeys. And who knew that Americ...more

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Jan 12, 2009 Gail rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction

"A History...in 6 Glasses" is an easy-to-read, specialized history of modern civilization with regards to 6 beverages with particular impact on human culture: beer, wine, liquor, coffee, tea, and Coca-Cola. I'm not sure I'm convinced that the drinks were quite as earth-moving as he portrays them, but I must remember how much effect a small but persistent motivation can have. I felt that each section (one for each drink) was tidy and self-contained, for better or for worse, and the writing style...more

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Jul 06, 2007 Aaron Donovan rated it 3 of 5 stars

I definitely enjoyed this look at the history of beverages, but I feel like the author could have gone more in depth with some of the beverages covered. For example, he includes three alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, and spirits) but doesn't really talk much about the social appeal of alcohol. The book is a little bit erratic on the various beverages, some touching on the process more than others. No doubt an interesting read, but it could be better.

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Nov 29, 2012 Stefanie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My dear reading guru Tricia lent me this book, which I believe she read for a class at some point. Though a lot of the information wasn't necessarily new to me, between the beer and wine in western culture and the globalisation classes I took, it was an excellent treatment of the subjects. The writing was accessible- it read sort of like a master's thesis written by someone who actually wanted someone besides his thesis committee to take interest in the subject. It felt a little repetitive at ti...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Florence Primrose rated it 3 of 5 stars

Throughout history six drinks have been associated with world history. First was beer in Egypt and Mesopotamia used as tribute, pay, and influence.
Next was wine which was popular in Greece and the Roman Empire. Next were the spirits which had a great influence in the New World.

The age of coffeehouses in England especially during the 17th century provided opportunities for men to plan and strategize for more privileges as well planning uprisings.
Tea was the major part of the East India Company i...more

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Oct 19, 2012 Williwaw rated it 4 of 5 stars

Apologies to all here: much of what follows are notes that I took on some interesting points, so please forgive the rambling, disorganized narrative.

The "Six Glasses" are: beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and Coca-Cola. This book is a history of the world through the lens of the six glasses, so it's selective in a geographical sense, but fairly comprehensive in a temporal sense.

Standage's book is just the right length: long enough to include important details, but short enough to keep the read...more

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Jan 16, 2012 Casey rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

Very short as world history books beginning with the first hunter-gatherers in the Fertile Crescent go. This book supposes that the history of the world can be traced through six defining beverages: beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and soda (with an epilogue about water). Some interesting points, but very heavy on the Western side of world history. As per the dates in this book, when the Greeks and Romans were having wine orgies, the Chinese were pioneering the harvesting, rolling, and steeping...more

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Jan 01, 2012 David rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history, random-non-fiction

This fun book takes us on a whirlwind history of the world through the lens of popular drinks. First we get beer in ancient Mesopotamia, then wine in Greece and Rome. After this is a big jump to spirits in the colonial period. Three caffeinated drinks follow the three alcoholic ones: coffee, tea and Coca-Cola. This book will teach you a bit of history and a lot about each of these six drinks. Perhaps the title is a bit wrong though, as "the world" = "the Western world." China finally makes an ap...more

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Huntsville-Madiso...: Staff Pick - A History of the World in 6 Glasses	1	7	May 04, 2013 08:31am

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About Tom Standage

Tom Standage is a journalist and author from England. A graduate of Oxford University, he has worked as a science and technology writer for The Guardian, as the business editor at The Economist, has been published in Wired, The New York Times, and The Daily Telegraph, and has published five books, including The Victorian Internet[1][2]. This book explores the historical development of the telegrap...more

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“By tracing the careers of the four members of the Philosophical Breakfast Club, Laura Snyder has found a wonderful way not just to tell the great stories of 19th-century science, but to bring them vividly to life.” — 1 person liked it

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