Published in 1809 when distillation of spirits was legal, The Practical Distiller provides recipes and distillation methods for homemade whiskey, gin, and brandy as well as history of the various ways that alcohol has been made since the 1600s. This tome includes entire sections devoted to yeast, choosing the best rye and malt, hogsheads, methods for setting stills, clarifying whiskey and recipes for making honey wine, elderberry wine and American wine. With an effluence of recipes, methods, and historical information, The Practical Distiller is quaint and charming combined with useful and practical distilling techniques.

This edition of The Practical Distiller was reproduced by permission from the volume in the collection of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1812 by Isaiah Thomas, a Revolutionary War patriot and successful printer and publisher, the Society is a research library documenting the life of Americans from the colonial era through 1876. The Society collects, preserves, and makes available as complete a record as possible of the printed materials from the early American experience. The cookbook collection includes approximately 1,100 volumes.