Asa: Us beer enthusiasts thank you for that link

That review is so very thorough, I think I don't really need to read the book. Thanks for the link - and the history lesson!

I've heard this story about rice being cheaper than barley in the past (from Dudweiser). If it's true then I find it surprising since rice is a very cheap cereal when purchased in the normal way from a retail outlet. Barley (or to be precise, malted barley) is relatively costly.