i mean, you may well know all of these stories, but you still get enormous sensual pleasure from reading about perilous journeys, distant islands in the southern seas and long-forgotten recipes. A very good for Indonesian, to understand the spice history and myth (as expensive as gold, colonialism). But it's informative in a narrow way and interesting enough to finish, so there's that at least. María Elena García. Pp. University of Washington. Fantastic profits could be made in the spice trade. The way the information was organized left me with some good impressions -- but lacking a usable framework for organizing and remembering what I'd learned. Fascinating history of the spice trading that was for hundreds of years the real engine of Europe's economy. I like the way it started from Venice, Lisbon and Amsterdam. A pleasure to read especially from an economic history perspective. spicy reading for food and history lovers alike.”–Associated Press“A delicious treat.”–The Vancouver Sun“Witty and erudite.”–Financial Post“Enticing.”–Chicago Tribune. In this engaging, enlightening, and anecdote-filled history, Michael Krondl, a noted chef turned writer and food historian, tells the story of three legendary cities–Venice, Lisbon, and Amsterdam–and how their single-minded pursuit of spice helped to make (and remake) the Western diet and set in motion the first great wave of globalization. Chiles are notoriously promiscuous and will cross-pollinate with no more than a glancing touch of a passing insect's thigh. Oct 28, 2008 The Taste of Conquest: The Rise and Fall of the Three Great Cities of Spice. He stops just barely short of menus and recipes. Oddly unfocused, should have stuck to either commercial and colonial history of Venice, Lisbon and Amsterdam (which this book didn't do well) or patterns of spice use in European cookery (which it did). The book breaks a few myths about spices, and connections to modern times are interesting. As a former chef now turned food historian, he’s well equipped to do that. This book tells that story and tells it in amazingly diverse detail. 304. A fascinating tapestry of how Venice, Lisbon, and Amsterdam flourished in the exotic spice trade. Barely even good. As a history-as-leisure read, this narra. 2013. “The Taste of Conquest: Colonialism, Cosmopolitics, and the Dark Side of Peru’s Gastronomic Boom.” Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology, Vol. The book breaks a few myths about spices, and connections to modern times are interesting. This volume plumps out, spices up, and generally revives and rounds out that history-- perhaps not Thai cuisine, but more Swedish Christmas baking. I think that theory ignores too many things, such as whale oil, furs, gold, and of course, religion. To really understand a distant time and place, you should be able to sample its antique flavors, sniff the ancient air, and take part in its archaic obsessions. I'm specifically interested in the history of pre-1650 culinary and medical use of botanicals, so for me personally it's probably only a 4 or 4.5, but it reads well. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. See 2 questions about The Taste of Conquest…, Food-related Kindle Books at or Below $10 (nonfiction), The Banquet: Dining in the Great Courts of Late Renaissance Europe, Cooking in Europe, 1250-1650 (The Greenwood Press Daily Life Through History Series), 45 of the Most Anticipated Sci-Fi and Fantasy Novels of 2021. 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