The Geography of Beer: A new book by Drs. Patterson and Hoalst-Pullen

KENNESAW, Ga. (Apr 9, 2014) — Drs. Mark Patterson and Nancy Hoalst-Pullen have recently finished their book titled, The Geography of Beer (Springer, 2014). The book is an edited collection and examines geography’s impact on the world’s third most widely consumed beverage (after water and tea). Chapters look at geography and beer from societal, environmental and regional perspectives, and include chapters on the geography of social media and beer, sustainability and the beer industry, and the diffusion of beer from Europe among other topics. The book has already received positive reviews all over the world from such outlets as Science Daily, Popular Science Magazine, Live Science, Techtimes, and EuroNews. From the book:

From its roots in early civilizations to its modern role in globalization, the role of beer through time and space have influenced the culture, economics, and environments of what society has grown, produced, and consumed. This edited collection examines the various influences, relationships, and developments beer has had from distinctly spatial perspectives.

The chapters explore the functions of beer and brewing from unique and sometimes overlapping historical, economic, cultural, environmental and physical viewpoints. Topics from authors – both geographers and non-geographers alike – have examined the influence of beer throughout history, the migration of beer on local to global scales, the dichotomous nature of global production and craft brewing, the neolocalism of craft beers, and the influence local geography has had on beer’s most essential ingredients: water, starch (malt), hops, and yeast. At the core of each chapter remains the integration of spatial perspectives to effectively map the identity, changes, challenges, patterns and locales of the geographies of beer.

More information on the book can be found here.