âA operatic tour-de-force.â âTilar J. Mazzeo, author of The Widow Clicquot
âAn impressive feat of research, told swiftly and enthusiastically.â âSan Francisco Chronicle
From Vanderbilt and Rockefeller to Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, Americaâs captains of industry are paragons of entrepreneurial success, and books about business history, from The First Tycoon to The Big Short, show exemplars of capitalistic cunning and tenacityâŚbut just as American cocktail connoisseurs can mistake Absolut, Skyy, Grey Goose, or Ketel One for the quintessential clear spirit, so too has Americaâs vision of business history remained naĂŻve to a truth long recognized in Eastern Europe: since the time of Tsar Nicholas, both vodka and commercial success have been synonymous in Russia with one nameâSmirnoff. Linda Himelsteinâs critically acclaimed biography of Russian vodka scion Pyotr Smirnovâa finalist for the James Beard Award, winner of the IACP and Saroyan Awards, and a BusinessWeek Best Business Book of 2009âis the sweeping story of entrepreneurship, empire, and epicurean triumph unlike anything the world has ever seen before.