Contrary to decades ago when anyone carrying the title of a herbalist is viewed as a charlatan or a third-worlder, a large part of the western world has woken up to the realities of the magical power of plants around them.

The Herball's Guide to Restorative Tonics, Delicious De-Stressors and Sleep Inducers shows an array of herbs and the kind of power they wield when combined well.

WHO WOULD ENJOY IT?
Anyone with an interest in natural medicine.


IS IT WORTH READING?
It depends on the reader. The book itself is full of recipes, plant attributes and other information about the right brewing processes needed to make an effective drink. Most importantly, the book cautions against picking plants based on assumptions or any other part of a plant other than the one specified. In short, this is not a book for amateurs.

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The Herball's Guide to Restorative Tonics, Delicious De-Stressors and Sleep Inducers - A Compendium of Plant-based Drinks to Make at Home by Michael Isted is available to buy on all major online bookstores. Many thanks to Quarto Publishing Group for review copy.

Once in a blue moon a book comes along that manages to be not only pretty to look at, but also useful. "The Herball's Guide to Botanical Drinks" combines beautiful photography and illustrations with loads of interesting, easy-to-duplicate techniques and recipes. There is a very thorough explanation of various herbs and other plants and their healing qualities, along with indications for use. Immediately following is a section on techniques from collecting and drying plants, making tinctures and elixirs, infused honeys, and other basic applications. Having successfully traversed this, the reader can delve into and choose from a vast variety of recipes to aid digestion, clear up skin blemishes, calm the nerves, or refresh the spirit, to mention just a few. Some recipes have wonderfully imaginative names. All come with a short introduction as to the whats and whys of the ingredients. At the end of the book is a useful list of supplies, covering both hemispheres, so that this book is a lovely gift for readers and fans of botanicals from Europe, the UK, the US and Canada, as well as Australia.

The Herball's Guide to Restorative Tonics, Delicious De-Stressors and Sleep Inducers is an excellent read for anyone interested in herbs and their various uses. It was a great read with well curated photos to help show the beauty of the various topics and tinctures. As someone with even a mild interest in natural remedies or herbs you will be able to find a recipe or two that piques your interest. With the background of the author it's clear he understands both the uses of the herbs as well as the flavor profiles. A great book to keep around the house for when the right season and inspiration hit.

A super book detailing so many plant/herb based drinks for de-stressing, reviving your love life, and so much more. Beautiful 18th century botanical drawings too.

This is an interesting book with a good mix of reference, instructions and plenty of recipes.  I would recommend that you have some experience in using botanicals or stick to the recipes that only use "safe" herbs to start with.

I grow herbs, a ton of herbs in my garden and use them with numerous recipes. What I haven't considered was how I could use herbs to create Botanical Drinks. I saw this book and it was as if a light bulb went on in my head. For the most part, I only drink water and green teas as I have gotten away from soda and the myriad of other choices in the store(those with ingredients I cannot spell or pronounce).
This book provided detailed information on the benefits of various herbs when you can grow them, how to process them, and now that you have done all that work, a unique selection of drinks. There are recipes for Cleansing, Restorative, Energizing, Boosters, Aperitifs & Digestifs, Love Elixirs and Sleep Potions. There is also a nice resource which lists places you can purchase ingredients used if you aren't interested in growing your own, but do want to enjoy your own herbal drinks. For whatever reason, sleep has been elusive lately, so the Sleep Potion recipes were the first ones I tried. I enjoyed the Hypnos Milk and Garden of Pleasure and while I can't say I slept better( too many good books keeping me up)I did enjoy the change from just drinking water and they both tasted delicious. I am excited to try additional recipes and to grow some different herbs alongside my garden favorites. This was an informative book with gorgeous pictures and if you have any interest in Botanical Beverages, I would recommend it without reservation.
Thank you Michael Isted, Quarto Publishing Group-Jacqui Small and NetGalley for the complimentary digital copy to read and review.

I'm really interested in herbs, how to recognize and use it.
I really liked this book. It is a very good guide explaining the different type of herbs, how to handle them and is full of interesting recipes.
There are wonderful pictures.
Strongly recommended.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing Group

This is the most beautiful book! The stunning cover would be enough to tempt me to buy it. The layout of every page is also superb with glorious photographs. I did, however, find that the pages with the textured background were not easy to read – though fortunately those pages were in the minority.

This is clearly a book for a committed modern alchemist. The range of drinks, the description of their uses, and detailed instructions for making them, is excellent. Be warned though that this is not a book for the backyard gardener or local forager; ingredients such as polished obsidian, propolis powder, silver coil – to name but a few- pepper these recipes. I found very few that I could make from my own garden and fields, and in this respect the book was a disappointment. For the enthusiast who wants to try these recipes however, there is an excellent list of suppliers (all around the world) at the end of the book.

The book offers a brief history about cultures around the world using herbal drinks throughout the years. It explains when and how one should collect and preserve the different parts of the plants from seeds and flowers to roots. It goes into detail about spring herbs, summers herbs, and autumn and winter harvest. Herb users will keep busy around the year following this book guide according to the seasons. There is a whole section about the processing of the herbs where readers will encounter the explanation of methods of drying and dehydration of herbs, juicing herbs, fermentation of herbs, etc. The last section of the book will cover the recipes for the herbal drinks. Here, readers will find the instructions for the recipes and other information such as what health benefits they offer. At the back of the book, there is a list for further reading for those who would like to explore/learn more about herbs and there is also an index. I just want to add that the book has a lot of pictures and these were beautifully done. I received a free copy via NetGalley.

I found this an absolutely fascinating read with lots of gorgeous pictures and recipes. It's one to dip in again and again. So the hardback is on the wishlist.

Ohh, so excited to read this book!

From the very first page, I adore this book. The photographs are absolutely stunning - this is a work of art and an excellent read that would make a perfect gift. Each plant is depicted by a characteristic line drawing and brief summary of taste and uses. The recipes are appealing, quaint and modern, and have beautiful inspirational names. In case you aren't a herbal apothecary, there are details of herb suppliers at the back (covering UK/Europe, USA/Canada and Australia). This is a book to be savored slowly.

An attractive book with some interesting information regarding herbs, etc. I found the recipes/practices completely unrealistic for the average person.

So, this book is fun! Good for those who are well versed in using herbs and for those who have never done anything save add pepper to cooking! It gives a fairly thorough introduction that I did not find tedious or stale (which starts to happen when you read a lot of books on herbalism) and will be very beneficial to beginners. The recipes are totally new and exciting and actually look like they will taste good, some very clever drinks that I plan on trying! Combine the delicious looking recipes with truly gorgeous photos and you have a really enjoyable read.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley for my unbiased opinion of the book. I enjoyed all the recipes for these yummy healthy drinks. I tried Little Dragon and Dew of the Sea both of which I loved. I appreciated this book. I am looking for alternatives to mass-produced drinks and ingredients that are better for my well-being. I will be buying this book for a few friends and family!

This is an interesting read if you like growing your own herbs, or infusing your drinks. A lot of the plants are easy to grow or find in a market and there are pictures depicting how each concoction is supposed to look. There are a variety of types of things to make, and you can take a spiritual approach and harvest each ingredient yourself or buy what you need at a market. It's a fairly informative way to pick up a new hobby.

This is a simple, well-done book that not only talks about the basics of herbalism and its roots, but also delves into using the herbs. It's perfect for a beginner, but also has recipes and material for a more seasoned herbalist. The first half talks about herbs, their uses, and herbalism in general. The second half provides the recipes and includes sleep tonics, love potions, and energizing drinks along with some of the basics like kombucha, oxymels, and jun. A good book for your collection!