The Complete Coffee Book: A Gourmet Guide to Buying, Brewing, and Cooking

Stimulating, subtle, rich--these adjectives may describe Perry's subject but not, alas, her work, as unremarkable if as serviceable as canned supermarket-shelf coffees. Her history of the legendary brew is standard-issue, bearing no evidence of spirited research. The buying guide identifies coffees from around the world, but descriptions are hard to understand and distinguish: beans from Guatemala, for example, ``have a smoky, acidic flavor that many people feel makes the perfect cup of coffee,'' while those from Peru produce ``a subtly flavored, lightly acidic coffee.'' Directions for brewing are adequate but lack the perfectionism of, say, Corby Kummer's articles on the ultimate cup recently printed in the Atlantic. Recipes range from the outlandish (e.g., steak pinwheels marinated in beef broth, coffee, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, honey, garlic, ginger and spices), to the probable (a chili prepared with coffee), to the expected (a cake flavored with coffee, chocolate and hazelnuts). Color photographs are generously supplied. (July)