| TABASCO: An Illustrated History | 
 enlarge | Author: Shane K. Bernard
Creator: Paul C. P. Mcilhenny
Publisher: University Press of Mississippi
Category: Book
List Price: $49.95
Buy New: $24.97
You Save: $24.98 (50%)
New (21) Used (6) Collectible (1) from $24.97
Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 270223
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 242
Shipping Weight (lbs): 4.1
Dimensions (in): 12.2 x 10.6 x 0.7
ISBN: 0979780802
Dewey Decimal Number: 641
EAN: 9780979780806
ASIN: 0979780802
Publication Date: September 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New. 100% money back guarantee. All books shipped from Strand Bookstore, New York City, USA.
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Product Description
TABASCO: An Illustrated History is the first and only book about the McIlhenny family and company based on previously untapped documents in the McIlhenny Company Archives. This chronicle examines the origin of TABASCO sauce, from its post-Civil War creation on Avery Island, Louisiana, to its evolution into the "gold standard" of pepper sauces and a global culinary icon. It also examines the often stranger-than-fiction stories that are inexorably bound up with the rise of TABASCO--Edmund McIlhenny's creation of the sauce in the midst of Reconstruction-era economic ruin; John Avery McIlhenny's adventures in Theodore Roosevelt's Rough Riders volunteer cavalry regiment; Edward Avery McIlhenny's explorations in the unforgiving Arctic; and Walter S. McIlhenny's amazing heroics in World War II, which eventually secured him the rank of brigadier general, even as he modernized his family business and ensured its success into the late Twentieth century. In addition to the central narrative, TABASCO: An Illustrated History contains numerous detailed sidebars, as well as over a dozen historical recipes selected from handwritten McIlhenny family cookbooks and other archival sources. This book boasts hundreds of fascinating photographs, both in color and black-and-white, many of which are previously unpublished. Shane K. Bernard is historian and curator for the McIlhenny Company and Avery Island, Inc., Archives. He is the author of Swamp Pop: Cajun and Creole Rhythm and Blues; The Cajuns: Americanization of a People; and Cajuns and Their Acadian Ancestors: A Young Reader's History (all from University Press of Mississippi).
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| Customer Reviews:
Life Story May 3, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
February 27, 1973. That's the day Avery was born. Nine months earlier, her mother and I spent a magical weekend at the Holiday Inn in New Iberia, Louisiana. We were both students at Tulane University in New Orleans.
Avery's mother and I didn't have much (any) money. We had heard that there was a very special place where they made Tabasco sauce and that one could tour the island and visit the salt mine for free.
So we drove from New Orleans to New Iberia, checked into the Holiday Inn and went on the (free) tour of the McIlhenny estate. It was magical: decades before it became politically correct to preserve wildlife such as the snowy egret (a bird), the McIlhenny family set aside an island paradise for anyone to see who bothered to make the (unadvertised) trip.
My wife and I named the wonderful girl conceived on our trip to Avery Island 'Avery".
Avery has married and has given me twin grandchildren, Anna and Jackson. I look forward to the day when I will walk Avery Island with them.
Great book January 21, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Wonderful photos, well written and a very thorough and fun to read history of our favorite hot sauce, Tabasco.
Tabasco, Spice With A Story December 17, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I purchased this book for several of my family members. It is so much more than a beautiful coffee table book, although, it is extraordinarily eye pleasing and informative! Not only are the recipes easy and delicious, they really represent a terrific display of authenic history of our Louisiana culture. The McIlhenny family history is as interesting as the story of how "Tabasco" became such a beloved icon of Avery Island and all of South Louisiana. I would reccomend it as a gift to your favorite "person who has everything"!
The Best of Recent Tabasco Histories November 6, 2007
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I have read both Rothefeder's book and Bernard's book. The former appears to be full of factual errors, some of them so ludicrous as to be laughable. The obvious anti-McIlhenny bias held by Rothfeder makes his work less believable, editorialized, and speculative. In contrast, Bernard's book is riveting, full of details, historical documents, and illustrations to which no one else has had access. The fact that the McIlhenny's have held their company together through ups and downs, profitably, is a testament to what is right about their business philosophy. Bernard's book was published by McIlhenny Company, but since he IS the company historian, you can bet that everything in there is accurate. It is the OFFICIAL history of Tabasco for good reason. If you're a fan of the sauce, you'll love this book.
Excellent book about an amazing product from it's humble beginnings October 31, 2007
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I was fortunate enough to be selected as one of the archaeologists who worked on recovering the site of the first Tabasco factory. That is where I met the author of this book, who at the time (2000) was still a Ph.D candidate.
With that disclaimer mentioned, this book is a fantacstic, all-encompassing story about one of the most beloved American products of all times. From it's humble beginnings that pre-date the Civil War, to its survival into the modern age of manufacturing and production, this book offers facinating tidbits of triva and many "are you SERIOUS??" revelations throughout. I particulalry like seeing how Tabasco's advertising campaigns have evolved over the years. The book does a great job in tracking the rise of a truly original American invention.
The author has been the McIlhenny Company historian for many years now and is THE source on all things Tabasco. He brings a great style to this book and has included some of the more rare photos from the past to help tell the story. Truly a must-have if you love Tabasco, if you want to know more about how this American legend began, or if you just want see how they get so much heat into such a little bottle.
Ayyyyieee!!
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