Read, Read, Read

Like Vodkas [fn1], there are a great deal of cocktail books out there, all of which propose to tell you how to make a cocktail, and with what ingredients. So how do I separate the wheat from the chaff?

            [Fn 1] Vodka is a tasteless ethanol, typically made from wheat and mostly made by some major establishments. So how does one differentiate one from another? If it’s tasteless and you’re making a complex, fruity martini, like a Cosmopolitan,  does it really matter?

So many books professing to be “new” and “exciting”. 

Embury goes on to define "cocktail"  as:  i. whets the appetite, ii.stimulates the mind, iii. pleases the palette, iv. pleases the eye, v. has sufficient alcohol, and vi. is well iced. However, if you know the secret [fn2], then you too can create your own special drinks.

            [fn 2] David Embury, pages 34-ff: a cocktail consists of a base (50% alcohol), for example vodka; combined with an agent (think lime juice or bitter); and a flavor (think of cranberry juice). Voila! A Cosmopolitan Martini Cocktail.

Frankly, all the cocktails have been pretty much invented. That’s not to keep you from slightly altering a recipe. Say, substituting fresh basil for cucumber and then Voila! change the name.

Strive to be an educated mixologist – not just a “cocktail by trial and error” mixologist (as I once was!)

With that in mind,  I have prepared this review of the books and resources I find to be invaluable to me in researching ingredients, liquors, substitutions, etc. and in the understanding of my own blending of a cocktail, making  my own Grenadine Syrup and bitters or perusing a book just hanging around on my cocktail table from Frau Martina Müller-Frasch of Melia's INSIDE Frankfurt hotel,  “Frankfurt Bar Tales”.

Constantine's Bookshelf
Photo - author.

            Presented here – categorized, are:

Guide to Mixology

The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks. David A. Embury, 1948. A staple on the theory of mixing, ratio of base (liquor) to accents and ingredients. Reviews liquors and includes recipes. A read of his biography is amazing.

Bitters & Shrub Syrup Cocktails – Restorative Vintage Cocktails, Mocktails & Elixirs. Warren Bobrow, 2015. Another how to on the creation of shrubs and bitters. A good tool.

Drunken Botanist, The Plants That Create the World’s Greatest Drinks. Amy Steward, 2013. What plants are used to create what liquors. You’ll want to know.

Cocktail Recipes

The Merchant Hotel Bar Book III.5.  The Merchant Hotel, Belfast. Download free. This is a 198 page beautifully photographed cocktail recipe book categorized with detailed recipes from their 3 bars. Pick one up in Belfast. [Yes that is correct this is a free 198 page, beautiful photos, downloadable cocktail book with detailed ingredients. Did I mention free. Email Merchants and thank them, si’l vous plait.]

Old Mr. Boston Deluxe Official Bartender’s Guide, Leo Cotton, 1935. Classic guide to cocktails and some other resources.

The Savoy Cocktail Book. Harry Craddock, 1930. Classic drink recipe book with substantial information on punches, and other drinks other than the traditional cocktail.

Mixology “MIX”. (ap. Free) Has the ability to search for cocktails by ingredient, name and has the ability to inventory your liquor cabinet.

Resources

Kindred Spirits 2. F. Paul Pacult, 2008. Tool recommended by the Chateau Frontenac barman who uses it as a rating guide to liquors on taste and value. Good tool if you want to know more before you buy; as well as choosing wisely.

The Drunken Botanist. Amy Stewart, 2013. Botanist guide to liquor! Delightful.

Ultimate Guide to  Spirits and Cocktails. Andre Domine, 2008. Don’t be intimidated by its size. Worldwide resource to liquors by nation as well as type. Important for any world traveler.

Rösle Bar Equipment. Rösle. Rösleusa.com. www.rösle.de
Website "Serious Eats, Cocktails and Spirits". Resource for cocktail 101 basics on ice, tools and techniques. www.drinks.seriouseats.com. Michael Dietsch does an outstanding job in teaching of tools, techniques and liquor reviews. An outstanding resource on how to.

Menus

Collect them on site, asking first of course; or download from your favorite bar website.

Pretty picture books, biographies and notables.

Drinking With Men. Rosie Schaap, 2013. Interesting autobiography by a prominent mixologist and writer for the New York Times, International Herald Tribune, and who knows what else.

The Cocktails of The Ritz Paris. Colin Peter Field, 2001.   Colin is the head bartender of the Paris Ritz Hotel’s “Hemingway Bar”. That hotel. That Bar. That Hemingway, who following the liberation of Paris at the end of World War II, pulls up with  half-track load of GI’s and takes them in for champagne! I’d name my bar after him too.

Frankfurt Bar Tales, An Intimate Insider’s Guide. Zinzow, Leo & Hoehne, 2006. The bars of Frankfurt, Germany.

Whiskey Women, The Untold Story of How Women Saved Bourbon, Scotch, and Irish Whiskey. Fred Minnick, 2013. The role of women in the liquor industry. Who knew?

Appetizers and Cookbooks

Culinaria. Konemann. A series on Greece, Spain, Germany, France and others that includes culture, food, and beverages and wines and liquor information and explanation.

Lucky Peach Magazine. Peter Meehan, published quarterly and online. A chef’s magazine and excellent resource. Complimentary newsletter found at store.lky.ph

Happy Reading!

Cocktail

Blackberry Bramble
1 part gin
 .75 part lemon juice
 .5 part simple syrup
 .5 creme de mure or blackberry liquer
shake ingredients with exception of the de mure, on ice. Pour into rocks glass with fresh large pieces of ice. Drizzle de mure on top and garnish with blackberry and other as you please.  
Appetizer – sea salt sliced avocado, lime side

Music – Marcel Zanini’s “Un Bourbon, Un scotch, Une Biérre” [Apple iTunes]