Coffee Floats Tea Sinks: Through History and Technology
True Adventure Social History Food History Collectibles Technology History Beverage Studies Antiquarian Reference Culinary Non-Fiction
Coffee Floats Tea Sinks: Through History and Technology is the cult-classic, lavishly illustrated hardcover that beverage collectors and food-history buffs scramble to find in nice condition. Ian Bersten—a globe-trotting tea and coffee trader turned historian—packs 284 pages with firsthand anecdotes, rare engravings, vintage advertisements, and scientific diagrams that trace 5 000 years of drink lore, from Chinese Tang-dynasty compressed tea bricks to the espresso machine patents that shaped modern cafés. The book’s unique “float/sink” title comes from Bersten’s own kitchen experiment that demonstrates density differences between tea and coffee, a typical moment in a narrative that constantly blends hands-on testing with archival detective work.
What makes this copy especially appealing is its collector-grade presentation: tight, square binding, crisp interior pages, and the original pictorial dust jacket—now scarce in any state—protected by only the faintest speck of foxing confined to the top closed edge. Young adults discovering culinary history and seasoned antiquarians alike prize the book’s lively voice; Bersten recounts sailing on clippers, negotiating in Ceylon auction rooms, and restoring 19th-century roasters, so the reader learns technology, economics, and social change through adventures rather than dry footnotes. First editions in clean condition seldom surface online, so demand stays high among food & drink bibliophiles, museum curators, and barista competitors who treat the volume as both reference and conversation piece.
Owning Coffee Floats Tea Sinks means having an authoritative, conversation-starting survey that covers everything from why British naval contracts switched the national drink from ale to tea, to how vacuum tins changed colonial trade routes, to the physics behind perfect crema. Place this handsome, jacketed hardcover on a shelf or café counter and you merge scholarship, storytelling, and visual charm—an irresistible trifecta for anyone who loves the past served in a steaming cup.
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