First Call for 'Beer Book Month'

Shelf Awareness

Inspired by the release of three "big name, beautifully done" beer books this January, Quayside Publishing, which specializes in illustrated nonfiction, has declared the month of March to be Beer Book Month. Quayside has also brewed up a corresponding blog, beerbookmonth.com, which has been featuring excerpts and selections from its beer titles since the beginning of last month. The trio of beer books are The Home Brewer's Guide to Vintage Beer by Ronald Pattinson, The Great Northeast Brewery Tour by Ben Keene and Craft Beer for the Homebrewer by Michael Agnew.

Ben Keene promoting The Great Northeast Brewery Tour.

"With all of these books coming out around the same time, and the authors so motivated to get out there, we thought it would be a great opportunity to bundle them together and reach the audience in a different way," explained Katie Fawkes, marketing and public relations manager for Quayside's food, lifestyle and sex titles.

During March, the publisher has on tap a variety of in-store and online events, Twitter chats, giveaways and promotions. Most of the events will be in breweries and pubs, but Fawkes has also reached out to beer and hobby shops. Among the brewery partners are Stone Brewing Company and Dogfish Head, and a few more eccentric events are also on the docket, including a brewing session led by Ronald Pattinson in Colonial Williamsburg. And although no visits to any bookstores have yet been booked, Fawkes is certainly amenable to the idea.

"We're trying to reach out to beer advocates and beer lovers, wherever they are," Fawkes said. --Alex Mutter


While in the UK Caroline Carpenter at The Bookseller reports:

New beer to promote Danny Wallace's 'Tom Ditto'

Writer and presenter Danny Wallace has created a new beer as part of the promotion for his forthcoming book Who is Tom Ditto? (Ebury Press).

The beer has been named Tom Ditto IPA, after the book’s title and its secondary character Pia.
Who is Tom Ditto?, released on 24th April, follows Tom as he tries to track down his missing girlfriend, and stumbles across "a strange and eccentric group of people with an irregular and highly-addictive hobby".
The beer created by Wallace, along with Nicholson’s Pubs and Truman’s Brewery, will be launched at Nicholson’s Pubs spring ales festival this month and will be available at the company’s pubs across the country.

Nicholson’s will also promote the book through beer mats and chapter samplers.
The book jacket will also feature on the beer’s dedicated pump clip and Wallace will do book signings at selected Nicholson’s pubs in key regions in May.
Wallace said: “I have done my best to brew the greatest beer of all time, which I fully intend to enter into the Booker Prize next year.”
Who is Tom Ditto? will be published in hardback by Ebury Press priced £12.99