Early writings: Doc’s Top Ten Bar Books of the 20th Century

Some may accuse a physician of partiality, but this Doctor of Mixology asserts these are the finest books published on ardent spirits in the twentieth century. Some speak of cocktails, some of spirits, some of the history of either or both.... all of these books are top notch insights into classic cocktails and their constituents:

1) David Embury: The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (1948)
This was an EXTREMELY popular book and can still be found at used book stores. It treats most aspects of mixology from a delightful Lou Grant perspective, sadly missing from the suck-up cocktail manuals of today. Embury is proudly partial when he raves over Booth’s London Gin and just as proud when he trashes the Red Snapper (the original American name of the Bloody Mary). Some recipes are included, but you want this book for its common sense hands-on view points on mixing and drinking. It is philosophy in spite of itself.

2) William Grimes: Straight Up or On the Rocks; A Cultural History of American Drink (1993)
The book is just what it says.... why we drink what we drink. Impeccable research by a superb writer -- whose day job is columnist on food, drink, and culture for the New York Times. Choice recipes and their origins take a back seat to an uncompromising and fascinating appraisal of the cocktailing habits of Americans 19th through 20th centuries.

3) Barnaby Conrad III: Absinthe; History in a Bottle (1988)
This beautiful book ties with the next book on my list as being the finest work on a single spirit ever published. It had to be a labor of love...... nothing is omitted from the immaculately conceived work. The writing, the illustrations, the research all make for an utterly captivating history which educates and interests. 

4) Gary & Mardee Regan: The Book of Bourbon (1995)
As with the last entry, this is a book that excites the senses about its chosen spirit.... with writing that transcends. In a word, it is a detailed, completely conceived work and a must-have reference. The enthusiasm of the authors is evident and infectious. These two are real pros. They have published 4 books on the subject of drinks and drinking including this one. When I consider The Book of Bourbon their finest work to date, it is as a great book among very good works.

5) Chas. Baker: The Gentleman’s Companion (or) Around the World with Jigger, Beaker, & Flask (1946)
This book is the embodiment of cocktail sophistication. It has everything. A dash of bon vivant, a splash of ne’er-do-well, a hint of world weary, and a liver of steel! You can generally find a copy of this popular classic via web book search engines. It is essentially is a combination recipe book/travelogue. The deal is the travel was all about drinking! (He was food & drink editor of Esquire in the ’30s, and boy could this guy write!)

6) You’ve seen Charles Schumann’s American Bar Book from Abbeville Press..... very popular. You NEED to find its predecessor.... the Tropical Bar Book (1986) which will utterly charm you into an Antilles Islands mood. Cuba too! The drink recipes range from great to merely pedestrian, but the beguiling stories and pen portraits seem magically to transport you into the company of Ernest Hemingway in a tropical sojourn. The beverages seem to gain an added quality because of it.

7) Harry Craddock: The Savoy Bar Book (1930)
Arguably the most beautiful cocktail manual in the history of the genre. It contains the defining recipes for the era of classic cocktails. Illustrated and superbly printed, it is humorous with an understated dry tone to the writing. It was written by the renowned head bartender of the Savoy Hotel in London -- a haven for the expatriate American during Prohibition. Original copies are expensive, but the value of this book hasn’t been lost on contemporary publishers -- and this book has seen at least 3 republications in recent years.

8) The Silver Bullet; The Martini in American Civilization (1981)
A book on a single recipe would seem to be the very definition of nerd-dom UNLESS it happened to be the Martini. Many, many books have been written on this, the one certified immortal deity among cocktails. Of them, this one early ill-distributed tome is unquestionably the best, and has the same great attributes I’ve attributed to the single-spirit books above. It did its job so well in the 17 years since its publication -- during which time we have seen Martinis and cocktail once again crowned king -- no one has been able to better or even really approach this effort. While this is a very hard book to find, it is due to be reprinted early next year.

9) W.J. Tarling: Cafe Royal Cocktail Book (1937)
I apologize, but you will never find this book. If you do, grab it -- cost be damned. It was published by the U.K.B.G. (The United Kingdom Bartenders’ Guild) which achieved its fame during American Prohibition. These Brits created some of the most WONDERFUL cocktails to grace the human palate in those years. Since these were recipes from “across the pond, ” a great many have never been reprinted. While the book itself has never been republished, subsequent publications from the U.K.B.G. have omitted most of the grand and tasty potions as well. This 1939 compendium catalogues their superb efforts.... superbly!

10) Beachbum Berry’s Grog Log (1994)
Another entry into the tropics. This is a little book from a small press makes serious business out of ferreting out the “secret ” recipes of Trader Vic & Don the Beachcomber -- to wonderful effect. They include other new or otherwise sourced tropic drink recipes, ALL of them are exquisite, and many have never seen the light of day before this humble guide’s publication. This would be a hard one to find, but it comes with an 800 number! 800-866-8929. Don’t know if the number is still good, but the book certainly is!

A final note- A tip of the hat to two other books: Patrick Gavin Duffy’s Official Mixer’s Manual (1934) which was the first bar guide I owned and the basis for my interest in the subject, and Stan Jones’ Bar Guide (1977). This ugly book is not only the most complete bar guide I’ve ever seen (5000 recipes) it has wonderful historical accounts of spirits and cocktails as well. I’ve heard tell of a European guide that doubles that recipe count, but until I see it, I’m standing by Stan. 

Written October, 1998