Cocktail Codex: Fundamentals, Formulas, Evolutions [A Cocktail Recipe Book]

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Variations on the flip can include two spirits or liqueurs, such as the white Russian (vodka and coffee liqueur), eggnog (rum and cognac) and the piña colada (light and dark rum). All the experts we spoke with agree nothing will develop your palate—and your ability to determine which ingredients complement each other—like tasting. It’s easier for most people to distinguish flavors like fruit, spices, and herbs than spirits and liqueurs, so take your time to taste your alcohols and compare and contrast them (this is the hard part). It’s a graphic novel of their last 6 menus. And to make things even cooler many of the characters are based off of real world bartenders from some of the best bars around the world. What I love about it is that there are unique and complex drinks in the book, but nearly all of them are very simple to make.

Well, Jeffrey Morgenthaler wrote the definitive guide on drinking etiquette in Drinking Distilled. Don’t want to sound like a douchebag and make your bartender hate you? Read this book. Unfortunately, the NoMad Hotel NYC closed recently, and took one of my favorite bars along with it.

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This makes it one of the most accessible books on the list. It also will give you a great appreciation for how small changes can have a big impact on a drink. It's very good for beginners and showcases all kinds of techniques. In addition, it helps readers think outside the box to create new drinks and explains everything clearly and logically. —Nico de Soto, master mixologist at Mace in New York City, NY The classic vodka martini and gin martini are made the same way, with dry vermouth and a lemon peel or olives for the seasoning. A negroni combines Campari and gin for the spirit, sweet vermouth for balance and an orange wedge for the seasoning. And the Manhattan uses rye whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters. You also wouldn’t buy a book with nothing but complex and obscure recipes if you just want to know how to make a decent Aperol Spritz for your friends.

This means that unlike a NoMad or Dead Rabbit book, which will undoubtedly ask you to go to the liquor store before you make anything, you’ll be able to open it up on a random Friday night and find plenty of drinks to make with ingredients you already have. And then every once in a while you find the rare book that hits the sweet spot. It has some drinks with ingredients you probably have, and are easy to make, but also features some more elaborate drinks that will be an adventure to create.It was the first realization that so many of the bars we’d been traveling around the world to visit actually have books where they not only share the methods to their madness, but give the real drink recipes for some of the best drinks in the world. What I love about this book is that there’s a little bit of everything, but it’s all generally very accessible.

Most are very elaborate and require tools like a water circulator, vacuum sealer, immersion blender or even more obscure tools to be able to make the drinks. I actually first heard about the book from Shingo Gokan, who is in it, while we were sitting in his bar the SG Club in Tokyo. And once you know the formula for say a standard daiquiri, you’re then able to take that knowledge and create any number of variations of your own. The presentation is phenomenal, and the more expensive version that comes in a presentation box is stunning. Flips basically consist of any fortified wine or liquor shaken with a whole egg or cream, and sweetened with sugar. They are typically garnished with a dusting of nutmeg or another warming spice, and yields dreamily creamy drinks like the White Russian , Eggnog, and Pina Colada. 6. Sidecar

The Extended Daiquiri Family

These six basic formulas are just a start. Learn these six, then learn to tweak them to create your own recipes. Not every substitution will work across the board, but these formulas are a good cornerstone to more drinks. Served in martini glasses, this type of alcoholic drink doesn’t usually include a sweetener, which makes them stronger. A fortified wine like vermouth, which can be sweet or dry, is added to the main spirit, along with a seasoning.

Neither of these drinks are easy or inexpensive to make, and both require preparing some home made syrups. Marrying a spirit, a sweetener and something sour — usually citrus juice, an acidic element — this trio produces delicious drinks every single time. They’re always unbelievably well done, and I can’t help but buy one every time there is a new one out. While the newer Dead Rabbit book I mentioned above is probably a better fit for most home bartenders (there are more recipes, and many of them are a bit easier to make), I’d be remiss if I left out their original book: The Dead Rabbit Drinks Menu.

Mojoto | A Minty Refreshing Cocktail

This isn’t the book I’d recommend to a total newbie, but if there’s someone in your life who is ready to up their drink game a bit? This is a wonderful addition to the library. Balance can be thought of in a similar way to taste—sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami—as opposed to flavor,” says bartender Devon Tarby, another co-owner at Death & Co and Proprietors LLC. “Taste is experienced through the tongue, and flavor is experienced primarily through the nose.” It was our last stop after a long day of bar hopping, and we loved the vibe of the bar. Unpretentious and casual, but with fantastic drinks. The photos inside are just as beautiful, and it will have you repeatedly saying: “I want one of those.” Death & Co’s Camellia Julep is made with cacao nib-infused pear brandy, instead of bourbon. Cole Wilson