The Best Bar Books
Trust me, I’ve
practically looked through or own every bar &
cocktail book up to the year 2007. Can't help it.
It's a hobby. As you've probably discovered, there are loads of
crappy bar & cocktail related books out there. The main problem
is that they are written by people that have never tended bar,
haven't tended bar in many years, or have never truly studied
the history and art of cocktails. Most are written by editors
of publishing houses that rehash and slice up a facelift on books
they have the rights to. The rest are generally low quality self-published
books.
The books
on this page are the the cream of the crop (in "my"
opinion) and not in any particular order. These
books are written by real life bartenders, drink historians, and
the top passionate cocktail culture people on the planet. Any
serious self-respecting bartender should have all of these books
in their bar book collection/library. Most of the links will
take you to amazon where I recommend you look for the used price
to save money.
NOTE:
Having had eight published books as of March 2008, I know a little
how the literary world works (and it has nothing to do with putting
money in my pockets because my agent gets 15% of and Uncle Sam
gets 25%). Once a contract is signed then the publishers can do
whatever they want with the book. Many times I've been verbally
lied to about the end result of a book only to be disappointed.
I only tell you this because I want you to know that a lot of
times the failure/suckiness of a book isn't always the authors
fault.
The Craft of the Cocktail: Everything
You Need To Know To Be A Master Bartender by Dale DeGroff.
Every bartender should have this
book in his or her collection. It’s sleek modern meets
art deco with its arsty type and angled text. Also, the
most famous bartender in America wrote it. |
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The Joy of Mixology: The Consummate Guide to
the Bartender's Craft by Gary Regan.
Gary
Regan did a great job of marrying modern and historical
information. Not only is the information is married, but
the look and feel follows suit by using a modern yet common
font that’s justified throughout most of the book.
It’s also printed on paper that gives the feeling
that you may be reading a book that’s 100 years old.
This book is a must for every bartender’s collection. |
Esquire Drinks: An Opinionated & Irreverent
Guide to Drinking by David Wondrich.
David
Wondrich is funny, informative, and clever. This man knows
how to write. He pieces words together in a way that paints
an elaborate picture in your mind. The pages are slick, colorful
and filled with well thought out graphic details that would
make any graphic artist drool. Most bartenders will only make
about 25 of the 250 cocktails in the book, but that doesn’t
matter because the researched history makes up for it. Also
the square shape of the book is oh-so-cool. |
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The Martini Companion by Gary Regan and Mardee Haidin
Regan.
This little book is elegantly packed with big information
about the Martini, gins, vodkas, vermouths and more! A straight
up read for the serious bartender thirsty for more. |
Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails by Ted
Haigh a.k.a. Dr. Cocktail
Bartenders
that take pride in their craft should own this book because
the wealth of cocktail history it provides is priceless. Also,
I love the retro/vintage look inside. |
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Miss Charming's Guide for Hip Bartenders
and Wayout Wannabes: Your Ultimate One-Stop Bar and Cocktail
Resource -Cheryl Charming
Yes,
this is my 5th published book. Yes, I sent then 150,000
words and they cut it to 75,000. Yes, they said it would
be a hardback filled with images.
The
reality is that I worked longer and harder on this book
than any book to date and the publishers decided for it
to be a paperback printed on crappy paper.
Everyone that has talked to me has loved it because it's
the first book that really tells you what it's like to be
a bartender. It's great for beginners to pros. My sister
even called me up one day and said, "I didn't know
there was so much to know about bartending! This book kept
me up all night!"
Other
reviews come from Dale DeGroff, Gary Regan, Tobin Ellis,
Doc Eason, Dean Serneels, and JB Bandy. They can be seen
at the
amazon link in the images.
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Champagne Cocktails by Anistatia Miller, Jared Brown
and Don Gatterdam.
Lots of eye candy pages bubbling over with a magnum of Champagne
info. Many bartenders don't know much about Champagne so that's
why I've included it. Some photos are so yummy you just might
lick the page. |
Killer Cocktails: An Intoxicating Guide
to Sophisticated Drinking by David Wondrich.
Most
bartenders, won’t make most of the cocktails in this
book out in the real world, but the pleasing words and graphics
cleverly trick you into learning lots of cocktail history.
Plus I just love this authors writing style. The book presented
in top spiraled-calendar type form. Unique! |
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Mixologist: The Journal of the American
Cocktail
This
"never before" published book series started in
2005. It includes articles and works from the most noted cocktail
authorities on the planet, people. All serious bar culture
people should collect these books that are sure to be something
very special and valuable for many generations to come. Jared
brown and Anistatia Miller are the publishers and editors. |
Cocktail: The Drinks Bible for the 21st Century by
Paul Harrington and Laura Morehead
.
In
1998, the Internet was in it's infancy for 99% of the public.
Paul Harrington was the first to introduce a very colorful
and informative cocktail website. Sadly, it’s no longer
around (the last seen page was in March 2005 and if you go
to www.archive.org
and type in www.cocktailtime.com in the Way Back Machine,
you’ll be able to view several of the pages). Don’t
faint when you see the price of the book on Amazon because
it’ll cost between $100-$150. Do I think it’s
worth it? Well, if you’re a serious collector of cream
of the crop cocktail books then, yes. |
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Diffords Guide to Cocktails
These
guides started in 2001. Simon Difford is passionate about
cocktails and it shows in his big, thick, and glossy colored
pages of fab cocktails. Every year he out does himself. I
love looking at the beautiful cocktails. |
Miss Charming’s Book of Bar Amusements by
Cheryl Charming.
Toot!
Toot! This is my first book. Inside are 80 fun bar tricks
rated easy to hard to bring a smile to you guests face. Every
bartender should have a coupla tricks up their sleeve!
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Vintage Bar Ware by Stephen Visakay
A wonderful
collector book covering the golden ages of cocktail shakers.
Loaded with history and tidbits! A book for all true cocktail
culture collectors. |
The Bartender’s Guide: How to Mix Drinks or
the Bon- Vivant’s Companion by Jerry Thomas
The first known bartender book first in 1862 by the Granddaddy
of bartending, Jerry Thomas. When you think about all the
traveling this man did, it’s short of amazing. I mean,
I know people in the 21st century that have never even set
foot out of their own state! This man was so passionate about
cocktails in a time when there were no airplanes, air conditioning,
ATM’s, or any of the modern conveniences we have today.
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The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book by
A.S. Crockett.
First
written in 1935 and is based on the cocktails made at the
Waldorf-Astoria Bar before prohibition. It’s interesting
to read what people were freely drinking before they were
forced to go to secret speakeasies or flee the country. Great
historic knowledge for all bartenders. |
Alcoholica Esoterica: A Collection of Useful And
Useless Information as it Relates to the History and Consumption
of All Manner of Booze by Ian Lendler.
Even
though some of the information in this book doesn’t
match up with recent researched information about drink, it’s
still a very entertaining book. No other book that I know
of starts with the line, "Yeast poop. That’s what
you’re drinking." |
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The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (1948)
by David Embury
Okay,
I have to admit that I’ve never seen or read this book.
However, almost every cocktail historian recommends it. The
reason I haven’t read it is because of the price. Used
versions sell from $189 to $250. It’s most definitely
a true collector’s item |
Miss Charming's Top 20
I was asked for my personal
top 20 all time bar & cocktail-related books
that I personally like and why. To me, these
books are meaty. Some are historical must-haves to understand
the relationship of where we are today in the cocktail world.
Others are rich in research, and others in research and luscious
graphics. Some are downright clever and creative and then there's
the light-hearted to balance it all out.
-Not in any particular order-
1
99 Ways to Open
a Beer Bottle Without A Bottle Opener – Brett
Stern
You can't help but smile when flipping through this book.
It was out of print for awhile and has just popped back
up as a cult fav...so the price jumped too.
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2
Alcoholica Esoterica: A Collection Of Useful And Useless
Information As It
Relates To The History And Consumption Of Booze –
Ian Lendler
3
Big Shots: The
Men Behind The Booze, The Real-Life Stories of Jack Daniel,
Captain Morgan, Jim Beam and many more.
– A.J. Baime |
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4
Champagne Cocktails – Anastatia Miller, Jared Brown
and Don Gatterdam
5
Cocktail: The Drinks Bible for the 21st Century
- Paul Harrington
6
Diffords Guide to Cocktails - Simon Difford
7
Esquire Drinks: An opinionated & Irreverent Guide
to Drinking - David Wondrich
9
How To Mix Drinks or The Bon-Vivant’s Companion
– Jerry Thomas
10
Killer Cocktails - David Wondrich
11
Miss Charming's Book of Bar Amusements - Cheryl
Charming
12
Miss
Charming's Guide for Hip Bartenders and Wayout Wannabes:
Your Ultimate One-Stop Bar and Cocktail Resource
-Cheryl Charming
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13
Mixologist:
The Journal of the American Cocktail
14
off the eaten path: inspired recipes for adventurous cooks
- bob blumer
I just love the creativity. |
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15
The Craft of the Cocktail: Everything You Need To Know
To Be A Master
Bartender – Dale Degroff
16
The Joy of Mixology - Gary Regan
17
The Martini Companion: A Connoisseur’s
Guide – Gary Regan and Mardee Haidin
Regan
18
The Old Waldorf Astoria Bar Book – A.S.
Crockett
19
The Ultimate A-To-Z Bar Guide – Sharon Tyler
Herbst & Ron Herbst
This book is like a big glossary with everything listed
alphabetically. |
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20
Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails -Ted
Haigh
Cocktail Library Downloads
