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Cider is a drink whose time has come. Twenty years ago it was a minority taste competing with lager for a share of the keg-and-can market, and much favoured by under-age and problem drinkers for its strength and cheapness. Since then its popularity has soared, and it has become the drink of choice - especially in hot weather - for all sectors of society.
But because of the low status of many mass-market brands, cider has never attracted the attention of researchers and writers to the extent that beer, wine, and spirits have. And nobody, until now, has attempted to unravel the many myths, legends, and misconceptions that surround its origins and development to present a factual narrative history.
Is cider, as legend has it, the oldest alcoholic drink of them all, or is it in fact a comparatively recent introduction? Did it come to Britain with the Celts, the Romans, or the Normans? Were medieval babies really baptised in it?
Golden Fire: The Story of Cider takes a long, cool, refreshing look at the evolution of one of Britain's favourite beverages and answers all those questions.
Über den Autor / die Autorin
Ted Bruning was born in Wolverhampton in 1957 and acquired a taste for antiquities from his father, an architect manqué, and his mother, an inveterate romantic. After training and experience in local news reporting, his antiquarian leanings were given structure and purpose by a medieval history degree at University College, London. In 1986 chance and opportunity led him to the hospitality industry and bar trade press: he was news editor of the Morning Advertiser, the licensees' newspaper, and then editor of What's Brewing, the Campaign for Real Ale membership newspaper. Here he was able to combine his knowledge of the pub trade and love of history with books including Historic Pubs of London (1998), Historic Inns of England (2000), and London by Pub (2001). More recent works have been trade manuals including the best-sellers The Microbrewers' Handbook (2007, now in its 7th edition), The Craft Distillers' Handbook (2015; 2nd edition 2017; 3rd edition forthcoming), and the Bar Owners' Handbook (2019). Histories have included Golden Fire: The Story of Cider (2012) and Merrie England: The Medieval Roots of the Great British Pub (2014). He has also published a volume of poetry, Phantastic Songs from the World Next Door, and is currently planning a change of direction with Arthur: The Last Roman.
