Category: rye

  • September 2025 Drink Book Releases

    Here are new cocktails and spirits books being released in September 2025.

    To see all the New Drink Books of 2025, visit this link

    September 2025 drink books

    • Savory and Sweet Shrubs: Tart Mixers for Delicious Cocktails and Mocktails
    • American Whiskey Master Class: The Ultimate Guide to Understanding Bourbon, Rye, and Other American Whiskeys

     

    • The Whiskey Bible: A Complete Guide to the World's Greatest Spirit

     

    • Get Lit: Cocktails That Bring Your Favorite Books to Life

     

     

    • Tequila, Mezcal & More: Discover, Sip & Mix the Best Agave Spirits
    • The Mixology Way: Classic cocktail recipes to master the art of mixology

     

    • The Japanese Way of Whisky: Japan's Whiskies and how to Enjoy them

     

    • Both Sides of the Glass: Paired Cocktails and Mocktails to Toast Any Taste

     

    • The Comic Book History of the Cocktail: Five Centuries of Mixing Drinks and Carrying On

     

    • The Whisky World Tour: A curated guide to unforgettable distilleries and their whiskies

     

    • Booze & Vinyl Country: 100+ Spirited Music-and-Drink Pairings

     

     

  • Thirty Four New Drink Books for Fall 2024

    Update 2: Now this list is up to 34 books

    Update 1: Detailed reviews of many of these books in my story for AlcoholProfessor are here.

    Fall 2024 booksS

     

    Citrus: A World History

    A Forager's Guide to Wild Drinks: Ferments, infusions and thirst-quenchers for every season

    Sicilian Cocktails: Contemporary Island Mixology

    Flavor Lab Creations: A Physicist’s Guide to Unique Drink Recipes

    Gin Drinker's Toolkit

    The Art of Calvados

    Cocktails from the Crypt: Terrifying Yet Delicious Concoctions Inspired by Your Favorite Horror Films

    The Mindful Mocktail: Delicious, Nutritious Non-Alcoholic Drinks to Make at Home

    MockTales: 50+ Literary Mocktails Inspired by Classic Works, Banned Books, and More

    The Official Yellowstone Bar Book: 75 Cocktails to Enjoy after the Work's Done

    Preserved: Drinks: 25 Recipes

    The Cocktail Atlas: Around the World in 200 Drinks

    Free Spirited: 60 no/low cocktail recipes for the sober curious

    The I Love Trader Joe's Cocktail Book

    A Forager's Guide to Wild Drinks

    The Whiskey Sour: A Modern Guide to the Classic Cocktail by Jeanette Hurt

    Rum A Tasting Course: A Flavor-Focused Approach to the World of Rum by Ian Burrell

    Malort: The Redemption of a Revered and Reviled Spirit by Josh Noel

    The Absinthe Forger: A True Story of Deception, Betrayal, and the World’s Most Dangerous Spirit by Evan Rail

    A Most Noble Water: Revisiting the Origins of English Gin by Anistatia R Miller and Jared M Brown

    Spirits Distilled: A Guide to the Ingredients Behind a Better Bottle by Nat Harry

    Cocktail Theory: A Sensory Approach to Transcendent Drinks by Dr. Kevin Peterson

    Behind Bars: True Crime Stories of Whiskey Heists, Beer Bandits, and Fake Million-Dollar Wines by Mike Gerrard

    Scotch: The Balmoral guide to Scottish Whisky by Cameron Ewen and Moa Reynolds

    Martini: The Ultimate Guide to a Cocktail Icon by Alice Lascelles

    The Hour of Absinthe: A Cultural History of France's Most Notorious Drink 

    The Vedge Bar Book: Plant-Based Cocktails and Light Bites for Inspired Entertaining by Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby

    The Sopranos: The Official Cocktail Book by Sarah Gualtieri and Emma Carlson Berne

    Drink Pink!: Cocktails Inspired by Barbie, Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, and More by Rhiannon Lee and Georgie Glass

    Puncheons and Flagons: The Official Dungeons & Dragons Cocktail Book

    Cocktails and Consoles: 75 Video Game-Inspired Drinks to Level Up Your Game Night by Elias Eells

     

    New Editions and Reprints

    Jigger, Beaker, & Glass: Drinking Around the World by Charles H. Baker Jr.

    Bartending Basics: More Than 400 Classic and Contemporary Cocktails for Any Occasion by Cheryl Charming

    In Fine Spirits: A Complete Guide to Distilled Drinks by Joel Harrison and Neil Ridley

    The World Atlas of Whisky 3rd Edition by Dave Broom

  • Fall and Winter 2022 Drink Book Preview

    So many drink books are coming out before the end of 2022 I decided to make a list of them. 

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    Links are to Amazon and they earn me an affiliate fee. 

    The Little Book of Aperitifs: 50 Classic Cocktails and Delightful Drinks

    Cheer: A Liquid Gold Holiday Drinking Guide

    The Cocktail Edit: Everything You Need to Know About How to Make All the Drinks that Matter

    The Bartender's Manifesto: How to Think, Drink, and Create Cocktails Like a Pro

    Cocktails, A Still Life: 60 Spirited Paintings & Recipes

    The Wine Bible, 3rd Edition

    Free Spirit Cocktails: 40 Nonalcoholic Drink Recipes

    New Mocktails Bible: All Occasion Guide to an Alcohol-Free, Zero-Proof, No-Regrets, Sober-Curious Lifestyle (Fox Chapel Publishing) 250 Tasty Drink Recipes Made with Fresh Ingredients

    Cocktail Time!: The Ultimate Guide to Grown-Up Fun

    Seattle Cocktails: An Elegant Collection of Over 100 Recipes Inspired by the Emerald City

    Behind the Bar: Gin: 50 Gin Cocktails from Bars Around the World

    Cocktail Botanica: 60+ Drinks Inspired by Nature

    Brand Mysticism: Cultivate Creativity and Intoxicate Your Audience

    Dicktales or Thankyous and Sluggings

    Cheers!: Cocktails & Toasts to Celebrate Every Day of the Year

    The Five-Bottle Bar: A Simple Guide to Stylish Cocktails

    A Bartender's Guide to the World: Cocktails and Stories from 75 Places

    Imbibing for Introverts: A Guide to Social Drinking for the Anti-Social

    American Rye: A Guide to the Nation's Original Spirit

    Pour Me Another: 250 Ways to Find Your Favorite Drink

    Midcentury Cocktails: History, Lore, and Recipes from America's Atomic Age

    World Cocktail Adventures: 40 Destination-Inspired Drinks

    Twist: Your Guide to Creating Inspired Craft Cocktails

    Raising the Bar: A Bottle-by-Bottle Guide to Mixing Masterful Cocktails at Home

    Steve the Bartender's Cocktail Guide: Tools – Techniques – Recipes

    Beer A Tasting Course: A Flavor-Focused Approach to the World of Beer

    The Anchor Brewing Story: America's First Craft Brewery & San Francisco's Original Anchor Steam Beer

    Classic Cocktails Done Well: Tried-and-True Recipes for the Home Bartender

    60-Second Cocktails: Amazing Drinks to Make at Home in a Minute

    How to Drink Like a Rock Star: Recipes for the Cocktails and Libations that Inspired 100 Music Legends

    Modern Classic Cocktails: 60+ Stories and Recipes from the New Golden Age in Drinks

    Bar Menu: 100+ Drinking Food Recipes for Cocktail Hours at Home

    The Cocktail Cabinet: The art, science and pleasure of mixing the perfect drink

    A Sense of Place: A journey around Scotland's whisky

    Cure: New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ’Em from the Award-Winning Bar

    Trap Kitchen: The Art of Street Cocktails

    Just a Spritz: 57 Simple Sparkling Sips with Low to No Alcohol

    Exploring the World of Japanese Craft Sake: Rice, Water, Earth

     

  • All the Cocktail and Spirits Books Released in 2019

    It's time for my annual post of (almost) all the cocktails and spirits books published this year, in consideration for gifting to others or keeping to read yourself. I know my shelf of to-read books is looking pretty menacing already, and I still have to buy some of these. 

    If I forgot your favorite book please do let me know and I'll add it! I am not excluding any cocktails/spirits books on purpose. 

    Links are to Amazon.com but you are encouraged to support your local independent bookstores when possible. 

     

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a49bad3e200d.jpgLow and No Alcohol

    Just the Tonic: A Natural History of Tonic Water by Kim Walker and Mark Nesbitt

    Alcohol-Free Cocktails: The Redemption Bar by Catherine Salway and Andrea Waters

    All Day Cocktails: Low (And No) Alcohol Magic by Shaun Byrne and Nick Tesar

    The Art of the Garnish by Leeann Lavin

     

     

    Gin Books 

    The Martini Cocktail: A Meditation on the World's Greatest Drink, with Recipes by Robert Simonson 

    Sip: 100 gin cocktails with just three ingredients by Sipsmith 

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a4d8bc80200b.jpgThe World Atlas of Gin by Joel Harrison and Neil Ridley

    The Big Book of Gin by Dan Jones

    Gin Made Me Do It: 60 Beautifully Botanical Cocktails by Jassy Davis 

    Ginspiration: The Best Distilleries, Infusions, and Cocktails by Klaus St. Rainer 

    Gin Cocktails: Classic & contemporary cocktails by Hamlyn 

    Aged Gin Cocktails: 25 Cocktails for Gin's Newest Style by Aaron J Knoll 

     

    International Books

    The Complete Guide to Japanese Drinks: Sake, Shochu, Japanese Whisky, Beer, Wine, Cocktails and Other Beverages by Stephen Lyman, Chris Bunting 

    Great Northern Cocktails by Shawn Soole

    Drunk in China: Baijiu and the World’s Oldest Drinking Culture by Derek Sandhaus

     

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a4b42e4b200d.jpgWhisky Books

    World of Whisky: Taste, Try and Enjoy Whiskies From Around the World by David Wishart, Neil Ridley

    The Complete Whiskey Course: A Comprehensive Tasting School in Ten Classes by Robin Robinson

    The Whisky Dictionary: An A Z of whisky, from history & heritage to distilling & drinking by Ian Wisniewski

    Whisky Cocktails by Hamlyn

    The Bourbon King: The Life and Crimes of George Remus, Prohibition's Evil Genius by Bob Batchelor

    Jim Murray's Whiskey Bible 2020: North American Edition by Jim Murray

     


    6a00e553b3da2088340240a444b248200c.jpgRum and Tiki 

    Rum Cocktails by Hamlyn

    The Home Bar Guide to Tropical Cocktails: A Spirited Journey Through Suburbia’s Hidden Tiki Temples by Tom Morgan and Kelly Reilly 

    Tiki: Modern Tropical Cocktails by Shannon Mustipher

    Minimalist Tiki by Matt Pietrek and Carrie Smith

    A Rum Tale: Spirit of the New World by Joseph Piercy 

    (new translation) D. KERVÉGANT – Rhum and Cane Eau-de-vie (1946)

     

    Other Spirits

    That's the Spirit!: 100 of the world's greatest spirits and liqueurs to drink with style by Jonathan Ray 

    The Tequila Dictionary by Eric Zandona

    Understanding Mezcal by James Schroeder

     

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a48a126d200c.jpgMisc Recipe Books 

    Schofields Classic Cocktail Cabinet by Joe Schofield, Daniel SchofieldHow to Cocktail: Recipes and Techniques for Building the Best Drinks by America's Test Kitchen

    Gather Around Cocktails: Drinks to Celebrate Usual and Unusual Holidays by Aaron Goldfarb

    Vogue Cocktails by Henry McNulty 

    Cocktails with a Twist: 21 Classic Recipes. 141 Great Cocktails. by Kara Newman

    Flask: 41 Portable Cocktails to Drink Anywhere by Sarah Baird 

    Happy Hour: The Cocktail Card Game by Laura Gladwin and Marcel George

    Spirits, Sugar, Water, Bitters: How the Cocktail Conquered the World by Derek Brown and Robert Yule

    The Complete Home Bartender's Guide: Tools, Ingredients, Techniques, & Recipes for the Perfect Drink by Salvatore Calabrese 

    Bar Chef: Handcrafted Cocktails by Christiaan Rollich

    Batch Cocktails: Make-Ahead Pitcher Drinks for Every Occasion by Maggie Hoffman

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a4a0eb13200c.jpgFloral Libations: 41 Fragrant Drinks + Ingredients by Cassie Winslow

    From Garden to Glass: 80 Botanical Beverages Made from the Finest Fruits, Cordials, and Infusions by David Hurst

    French Moderne: Cocktails from the Twenties and Thirties with recipes by Franck Audoux

    Fancy AF Cocktails: Drink Recipes from a Couple of Professional Drinkers by Ariana Madix, Tom Sandoval

    The Postmodern Bartender by Hayden Wood

    The NoMad Cocktail Book by Leo Robitschek

    The Aviary: Holiday Cocktails  by Grant Achatz, Nick Kokonas, Allen Hemberger

    How to Cocktail: Recipes and Techniques for Building the Best Drinks by America's Test Kitchen

    Let's Get Blitzen: 60+ Christmas Cocktails to Make Your Spirits Bright by Sother Teague

     

     

    Misc Books: Industry, Bitters, Distilling

    Botany at the Bar: The Art and Science of Making Bitters by Selena Ahmed, Ashley Duval, Rachel Meyer 

    How To Get U.S. Market-Ready: Wine and Spirits by Steve Raye

    The Art of Distilling, Revised and Expanded: An Enthusiast's Guide to the Artisan Distilling of Whiskey, Vodka, Gin and other Potent Potables by Bill Owens, Alan Dikty, Andrew Faulkner

     

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a4c051c9200b.jpgCocktail and Culture Books

    The Official Downton Abbey Cocktail Book: Appropriate Libations for All Occasions 

    Shaken: Drinking with James Bond and Ian Fleming, the Official Cocktail Book

    Last Call: Bartenders on Their Final Drink and the Wisdom and Rituals of Closing Time by Brad Thomas Parsons

    Are You Afraid of the Dark Rum?: and Other Cocktails for '90s Kids  by Sam Slaughter

    Drink Like a Geek: Cocktails, Brews, and Spirits for the Nerd in All of Us by Jeff Cioletti 

    A Sidecar Named Desire: Great Writers and the Booze That Stirred Them by Greg Clarke and Monte Beauchamp

    Gin Austen: 50 Cocktails to Celebrate the Novels of Jane Austen by Colleen Mullaney 

    Gin Rummy: Gin Lovers Playing Cards by Emma Stokes and Jean Andre

    Glass and Gavel: The U.S. Supreme Court and Alcohol by Nancy Maveety

    Bourbon Justice: How Whiskey Law Shaped America by Brian F. Haara 

     

    Beer, Cider, and Wine Books 

    6a00e553b3da2088340240a4b36012200d.jpgDrink Better Beer: Discover the Secrets of the Brewing Experts by Joshua M. Bernstein 

    Cider Revival: Dispatches from the Orchard by Jason Wilson

    Spritz Fever!: Sixty Champagne and Sparkling Wine Cocktails by Elouise Anders 

    The Cider Insider: The Essential Guide to 100 Craft Ciders to Drink Now by Susanna Forbes

    The Lager Queen of Minnesota: A Novel by J. Ryan Stradal 

    Natural Wine for the People: What It Is, Where to Find It, How to Love It by Alice Feiring 

    Celebrate Rosé: Cocktails & Parties for Life's Rosiest Moments by Ashley Rose Conway

    Cheese Beer Wine Cider: A Field Guide to 75 Perfect Pairings by Steve Jones and Adam Lindsley

    Sakepedia: A Non-Traditional Guide to Japan’s Traditional Beverage by Jeff Cioletti

    The Bucket List: Beer: 1000 Adventures " Pubs " Breweries " Festivals by Justin Kennedy

    The World Atlas of Wine 8th Edition by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson

    YES WAY ROSÉ A Guide to the Pink Wine State of Mind by Erica Blumenthal and Nikki Huganir

     

    Not enough books for you??? Check out:

    All the Cocktail and Spirits Books Released in 2018

    All the drink books that came out in 2017

    All the Cocktails and Spirits Books Published in 2016 for Reading or Gifting

    All the Cocktails & Spirits Books Published in 2015, For Reading or Gifting

    More Than 40 Drink Books Published in 2014 for Reading or Gifting

     

     

     

  • A Visit to MGP’s Lawrenceburg Distillery

    As most of you nerds already know, most of the rye whiskey produced in the US is made at MGP Ingredients, aka Midwest Grain Products. They also make a ton of bourbon and neutral spirit used for vodka and gin. These products are fermented and distilled on site, aged on site or elsewhere, and bottled up as a zillion different brands on the marketplace. 

    Now in the past few years, MGP has begun to release a range of their own products. Interestingly they're not all under MGP as a brand name but under various names including George Remus bourbon, Till vodka, and Rossville Union rye whiskey. The press trip I took to the distillery was more about introducing these products to the world than the various client brands made here, but naturally that was of interest too. 

     

    History and Products

    The distillery was officially founded in 1847 by George Ross as Rossville Distillery, though they've found evidence that there has been distilling on the site going back to at least 1808. In 1933 at the end of Prohibition, the distillery was purchased by Seagram and run by the company until 2001. The company was sold to Pernod-Ricard and owned by them until 2007, when it was purchased by MGP. 

    MGP itself is a company founded in 1941 to make high-test alcohol for torpedos to support the war effort. They actually own two distilleries though we only hear about this one.

    At the Lawrenceburg distillery (outside Cincinnati but on the border of Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana) they mostly produce the aged products – whiskies- though they also do some gin and neutral spirits. The other distillery, located in Atchison, Kansas (the site of the company headquarters where it was founded) distills neutral spirits and makes gin.  

     

    MGP - Lawrenceburg(The Lawrenceburg distillery, pics from MGP)

    MGP - Lawrenceburg(The Atchison distillery that I did not visit. Pic from MGP.)

     

    Lawrenceburg

     

    Of all the products (listed here), the most well-known and popular that they sell to various brands are the:

    • 95% rye whiskey (a mashbill of 95% rye, 5% malted barley)
    • 51% rye whiskey (51% rye, 45% corn, 4% malted barley)
    • bourbon 36% rye (60% corn, 36% rye, 4% malted barley)
    • bourbon 21% rye (75% corn, 21% rye, 4% malted barley)

    So when you see those mashbills listed on products with various names (particular the 95% rye), there is a super good chance they were distilled at MGP. 

    Since they're dealing with lots and lots of grain, they also make grain products (list here), including raw ingredients for everything from pastries to pizza crust to imitation cheese. 

    I asked them how many mashbills they make in total. "We make a lot," came the definitive reply. 

     

    MGP Spirits

    I was a bit worried that the MGP brands were just going to be the regular MGP products as all the various other brands with a different label and not have anything to say about them. Luckily there is a clear point of differentiation. When it comes to the vodka, theirs is made from wheat, when most of their clients' vodka is made from corn. But more importantly, the whiskies:

    While nearly all their clients bottle whiskey that's of a single mashbill, MGP brand whiskies are all combinations of multiple mashbills. So George Remus Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a mix of the 21 and 36 percent high rye bourbons, and Rossville Union is a blend of the 95 and 51 percent rye mashbills.

    This gives these products a point of differentiation from their many clients' products. 

     

    A Look Around the Distillery

    The facility is a bunch of brick buildings located on one site, like a campus with no student lawns or a really big depressing orphanage. Different buildings house different parts of the operation – the grain store, fermentation room, distillery, grain dryer, barrel warehouses, etc. 

    The facility is not set up for tourists or photography, and basically we were able to see what we could see. 

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    The water for the distillery comes from an aquifer, and it remains a constant 56 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. That's very convenient as in the hot summers the water is still cool to run through the condensers. 

    The fermentation room (there are 14, 27,000 gallon vats in this room; there is another room but I'm not sure if it's the same size). Fermentation takes about 3 days. 

     

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    IMG_3780

     

    We were unable to take pictures in the distillery room, but as it passes through several floors of a building we could really only see one section of the column still and a part of the squareish gin stills anyway. In this facility there are three gin stills and two continuous column stills.

    We visited one warehouse – there are seven on-site and I think 5 more elsewhere (though I'm not confident in those numbers). 

    This warehouse has six floors with six tiers per floor, with each floor separate from those above and below it acting as a "horizontal aging chamber." This is unlike the "vertical aging chamber" rickhouses in Kentucky where it's an open model (there's a frame on the outside but it acts as one big room) and the bottom level is cool while the top floor is super hot. The Kentucky rickhouses lose more water, as opposed to the humid ones here. They say that makes for a mellower whiskey. 

    Their standard barrel entry proof for whiskey is 120. We visited just the one warehouse that was racked. I inquired if their others might be palletized and the person I spoke to was evasive enough about answering that we can assume some are. 

     

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    IMG_3786
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    Product Specifics

    So far, most of the line of MGP spirits is available in about 13 states. They're moving systematically rather than hitting the whole country at once. 

    MGPProductLineUp

     

    Tanner's Creek whiskey, a blended bourbon, is only available in Indiana. 

    Eight & Sand blended whiskey is the newest product. It contains no GNS (grain neutral spirits), and no coloring.  It's more than 51% bourbon bottled at 44% ABV. It's a blend of bourbon, rye, light whiskey, and corn whiskey. 

    "Eight and Sand" refers to a train going full-throttle (the eight) with added traction (sand on the tracks). 

    George Remus Bourbon is a blend of 21 and 36% rye bourbons, aged 5-6 years and bottled at 47%. 

    George Remus, the person, was a pharmacist turned attorney. He  wrote prescriptions for medicinal whiskey during Prohibition and had his own brand of medicinal whiskey. Not only that, but he had his own medicinal whiskey trucks "hijacked" so that he could report the whiskey stolen and sell it illegally. He was known as "King of the Bootleggers" and may have been the inspiration for Jay Gatsby. He murdered his wife but was acquitted for 'temporary insanity.' More about his life here

    There is also a George Remus Reserve bottling and so far there have been two of these.

    Rossville Union rye whiskey is a blend of their 51% and 95% rye whiskey mashbill whiskeys aged about 5-6 years. The standard bottling is 47% ABV. 

    They also sell a barrel-proof Rossville Union rye, and it's my favorite of their products. It's about the same age as their standard rye, but with a different ratio of rye mashbills. It has all that lovely pickle brine flavor but bottled at 56.3% ABV. 

     

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  • All the Cocktail and Spirits Books Released in 2018, In Consideration for Gifting or Reading

    It's the annual Alcademics drink book round-up! These are all the cocktails and spirits books that I know about published in 2018, with a couple of wine and beer books thrown in for good measure. It's over 60 books in total. Read them yourself or give 'em as gifts. 

    This year there appear to be less overall history books, and more women-centric books, whether history or not. Cocktail recipe books are all quite specific, with several that focus on theory and technique; and these overlap with books designed with the professional bartender in mind.

    Get to reading.  

     

    Cocktail/Recipe Books

    IMG-2556Julep: Southern Cocktails Refashioned by Alba Huerta and Marah Stets 

    The One-Bottle Cocktail: More than 80 Recipes with Fresh Ingredients and a Single Spirit by Maggie Hoffman

    Tequila Beyond Sunrise: Over 40 tequila and mezcal-based cocktails from around the world by Jesse Estes

    Finding Mezcal: A Journey into the Liquid Soul of Mexico, with 40 Cocktails by Ron Cooper and Chantal Martineau

    Wild Mocktails and Healthy Cocktails: Home-grown and foraged low-sugar recipes from the Midnight Apothecary by Lottie Muir

    Infused Booze: Over 60 Batched Spririts and Liqueurs to Make at Home by Kathy Kordalis

    Session Cocktails: Low-Alcohol Drinks for Any Occasion by Drew Lazor and Editors of PUNCH

    The Cocktail Garden: Botanical Cocktails for Every Season by Ed Loveday and Adriana Picker

    Booze & Vinyl: A Spirited Guide to Great Music and Mixed Drinks by André Darlington and Tenaya Darlington

    Doctor's Orders: Over 50 inventive cocktails to cure, revive & enliven by Chris Edwards and Dave Tregenza

    Cocktail Italiano: The Definitive Guide to Aperitivo: Drinks, Nibbles, and Tales of the Italian Riviera by Annette Joseph

    Clean + Dirty Drinking: 100+ Recipes for Making Delicious Elixirs, With or Without Booze by Gabriella Mlynarczyk

    Are You There God? It's Me, Margarita: More Cocktails with a Literary Twist (A Tequila Mockingbird Book)  by Tim Federle 

    The Art & Craft of Coffee Cocktails: Over 80 recipes for mixing coffee and liquor by Jason Clark

    Aperitif: A Spirited Guide to the Drinks, History and Culture of the Aperitif by Kate Hawkings

    The Joy of Mixology, Revised and Updated Edition: The Consummate Guide to the Bartender's Craft by Gary Regan

    The Dead Rabbit Mixology & Mayhem: The Story of John Morrissey and the World’s Best Cocktail Menu by Sean Muldoon and Jack McGarry

    Nightcap: More than 40 Cocktails to Close Out Any Evening by Kara Newman

    Be Your Own Bartender: A Surefire Guide to Finding (and Making) Your Perfect Cocktail by Carey Jones and John McCarthy

    Cocktail Codex: Fundamentals, Formulas, Evolutions by Alex Day and Nick Fauchald

    Winter Drinks: 70 Essential Cold-Weather Cocktails by Editors of PUNCH

    Tequila: Shake, Muddle, Stir: Over 40 of the Best Cocktails for Tequila and Mezcal Lovers by Dan Jones

    Pickle Juice: A Revolutionary Approach to Making Better Tasting Cocktails and Drinks by Florence Cherruault

    The Mini Bar: 100 Essential Cocktail Recipes; 8 Notebook Set by Editors of PUNCH

    The Curious Bartender Volume II: The New Testament of Cocktails by Tristan Stephenson 

    Glamorous Cocktails: Fashionable mixes from iconic London bars  by William Yeoward 

    Prosecco Made Me Do It: 60 Seriously Sparkling Cocktails by Amy Zavatto 

    Rock Cocktails: 50 rock 'n' roll drinks recipes―from Gin Lizzy to Guns 'n' Rosés

    Northern Hospitality with The Portland Hunt + Alpine Club: A Celebration of Cocktails, Cooking, and Coming Together by Andrew Volk and Briana Volk

    The Aviary Cocktail Book by Grant Achatz, Micah Melton, Nick Kokonas, Allen and Sarah Hemberger.

    The Cocktail Companion: A Guide to Cocktail History, Culture, Trivia and Favorite Drinks by Cheryl Charming

    Drink London (London Guides)  by Euan Ferguson

    Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari: Tenth Anniversary Expanded Edition by Jeff Beachbum Berry

     

     

    Wine Books 

    Wild Winemaking: Easy & Adventurous Recipes Going Beyond Grapes, Including Apple Champagne, Ginger–Green Tea Sake, Key Lime–Cayenne Wine, and 142 More by Richard W. Bender

    Ten Grapes to Know: The Ten and Done Wine Guide by Catherine Fallis

    Wine Food: New Adventures in Drinking and Cooking by Dana Frank and Andrea Slonecker

    The Sommelier's Atlas of Taste: A Field Guide to the Great Wines of Europe by Rajat Parr and Jordan Mackay 

    Prosecco Made Me Do It: 60 Seriously Sparkling Cocktails by Amy Zavatto

     

    Spirit Books, Misc.

    The Connoisseur’s Guide to Worldwide Spirits: Selecting and Savoring Whiskey, Vodka, Scotch, Rum, Tequila . . . and Everything Else (An Expert’s Guide … and Savoring Every Spirit in the World) by Richard Carleton Hacker

     Tabletop Distilling: How to Make Spirits, Essences, and Essential Oils with Small Stills by Kai Möller

    The Gin Dictionary by David T. Smith

    The Book of Vermouth: A Bartender and a Winemaker Celebrate the World's Greatest Aperitif by Shaun Byrne and Gilles Lapalus

    The Curious Bartender's Guide to Gin: How to appreciate gin from still to serve by Tristan Stephenson 

     

    Women-Centric Drink Books

    IMG-2558Craft Cocktails by Val: Drinks Inspired by Hillary Rodham Clinton

    Drinking Like Ladies: 75 modern cocktails from the world's leading female bartenders; Includes toasts to extraordinary women in history by Misty Kalkofen and Kirsten Amann

    Liberated Spirits: Two Women Who Battled Over Prohibition by Hugh Ambrose and John Schuttler

    A Woman's Drink: Bold Recipes for Bold Women by Natalka Burian 

    Movers and Shakers: Women Making Waves in Spirits, Beer & Wine by Hope Ewing

    Free the Tipple: Kickass Cocktails Inspired by Iconic Women 
    by Jennifer Croll (Author), Kelly Shami (Illustrator)

     

     History Books

    A Short History of Drunkenness: How, Why, Where, and When Humankind Has Gotten Merry from the Stone Age to the Present by Mark Forsyth 

    A Thousand Thirsty Beaches: Smuggling Alcohol from Cuba to the South during Prohibition by Lisa Lindquist Dorr

    Moonshine: A Celebration of America's Original Rebel Spirit by John Schlimm

    A Drinkable Feast: A Cocktail Companion to 1920s Paris  by Philip Greene 

     

    Beer, Mead, Cider

    Mead: The Libations, Legends, and Lore of History's Oldest Drink by Fred Minnick 

    Will Travel for Beer: 101 Remarkable Journeys Every Beer Lover Should Experience by Stephen Beaumont 

    Beer: 150 Awesome Facts About Your Favorite Brew by Caroline West

    Ciderology: From History and Heritage to the Craft Cider Revolution by Gabe Cook

    The Craft Beer Dictionary: An A-Z of craft beer, from hop to glass by Richard Croasdale

    Kitchen Brewing: A New, Easier and Quicker Way to Home Brew by Jakob Nielsen and Mikael Zetterberg

     

    Bar, Drinking Culture, and Professional Books 

    IMG-2560Bars, Taverns, and Dives New Yorkers Love: Where to Go, What to Drink by John Tebeau

    Drinking Distilled: A User's Manual by Jeffrey Morgenthaler

    I'm Just Here for the Drinks: A Guide to Spirits, Drinking and More Than 100 Extraordinary Cocktails by Sother Teague

    Hungover: The Morning After and One Man's Quest for the Cure by Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall

    Allergen Awareness: A Chef's Perspective by Myron Keith Norman

    Batched & Bottled by Max Venning 

    The Cocktail Bar: Notes for an Owner & Operator by Chall Gray

     

    Whiskey Books

    From Dram to Manhattan: Around the world in 40 whisky cocktails from Scotch to Bourbon by Jesse Estes

    Hacking Whiskey: Smoking, Blending, Fat Washing, and Other Whiskey Experiments by Aaron Goldfarb 

    The Bourbon Bible by Eric Zandona 

    Whiskey America  by Dominic Roskrow 

    Single Malt: A Guide to the Whiskies of Scotland: Includes Profiles, Ratings, and Tasting Notes for More Than 330 Expressions by Clay Risen

    World's Best Whiskies:750 Unmissable Drams from Tain to Tokyo by Dominic Roskrow  

    Bourbon Justice: How Whiskey Law Shaped America by Brian F. Haara 

     

     

    Not enough books for you? Check out:

    All the drink books that came out in 2017

    All the Cocktails and Spirits Books Published in 2016 for Reading or Gifting

    All the Cocktails & Spirits Books Published in 2015, For Reading or Gifting

    More Than 40 Drink Books Published in 2014 for Reading or Gifting

     

  • A Belvedere Distillery Visit and Vodka Terroir in the Single Estate Series

    Single estate seriesIn the summer of 2017 I visited Poland with Belvedere Vodka to see how the vodka is made and to learn about the then-forthcoming Single Estate Rye series of vodkas, in which the same rye was grown in two different parts of Poland and separate, unfiltered vodkas were made from each.  We got super deep into the science of terroir. 

    Belvedere is made from rye, which is first distilled at one of seven regional farm distilleries, and then redistilled and bottled at a distillery named Polmos Zyrardow. ("polmos" = "distillery") From other trips to Poland I've learned regional distilling followed by central distilling is quite common- why truck all that grain around when you can condense it into high-proof spirit and just transport the liquid?

    The Polmos Zyrardow distillery dates back to 1910, and they've been making Belvedere exclusively at the facility since 1993. 

    Polish Vodka

    • If the bottle says it's Polish vodka, it can't have additives like sugar/glycerin etc.
    • It must also be made from a grain (rye, wheat, triticale, oats or barley) or from potatoes, rather than other fermentable material like molasses. 
    • Though it must be additive-free (this is exclusive of flavored vodka of course), it can be aged. 
    • The first reference to vodka is from Poland in 1405. 
    • Here's a more official page of Polish vodka production rules and processes

    Belvedere is made from rye, which has been grown in Poland for over 1000 years. Rye can thrive in harsh conditions; both hot and cold. Belvedere Pure (the flagship original) is distilled from golden rye, a high starch strain good for making alcohol that dates to the 1800s. The Single Estate series is made from another variety called diamond rye. 

     

    Belvedere Zyrardow Distillery (18)

     

    On site at Polmos Zyrardow is a water treatment plant that processes water from their well water source a 3km from the distillery. Water is purified in four stages: oxidation to break down chemical compounds into smaller parts; mineral filtration to remove iron and manganese; a soft filter to remove calcium and magnesium, and a carbon filter to remove all taste and odor. For water that is used to dilute Belvedere to its final proof, this water is then further filtered with reverse osmosis. 

    High-proof spirit comes in from the 7 farm distilleries and is redistilled at Polmos Zyrardow. It comes in at around 90-92% ABV, then it is watered down to 44-45% ABV before going into the stills. There are three columns in this distillery:

    • The first column is the purification column, which removed impurities at the lower boiling temperatures than alcohol.
    • The second column is the main rectification column, which removes impurities at a higher boiling point than alcohol, and brings the spirit back up to 96.5-96.6% ABV. 
    • The third column is the methanol column, which removes methanol created during fermentation. 

    The distillery runs for two seasons per year (corresponding to rye harvests I imagine), 24 hours/day (because it's harder to start and stop column stills) for a total of 167 days per year. 

    All the flavored varieties of Belvedere are made in house in the "alembic area." There they have cognac stills. The various ingredients are macerated in vodka of different strengths, and left to sit from anywhere from 2 days to 2 weeks. The fleshy fruits might go into higher alcohol spirit and stay for longer than things like tea. They're then redistilled to make the concentrated flavors. They make each flavor separately, then blend them together for their combination products. 

    Belvedere Pure is charcoal filtered. (The single estate range is not.)

    Finally the vodka is diluted and bottled at the distillery. 

     

    The Single Estate Rye Series, and the Science of Terroir

    Our group then flew to the Lake District of Poland, to the Bartezek estate, where the rye for one of the two Single Estate Series vodkas is grown and first distilled. The flight passed over lots of green farmland, forests, and small farms before getting to the Lake District- from our flight path it looked like a series of lakes and streams between them. 

    The Lake District is made up of about 2000 lakes, and it's located far from industry and sources of pollution. The climate is of long snowy harsh winters and short summers. 

     

    Belvedere trip Lake Country Education Site (1)

     

    We didn't visit the Smogory Forest estate, but the climate there is "the mildest in Poland." Belvedere Unfiltered vodka was the same product as the Smogory Forest single estate vodka is now- they changed the name to accent the difference between it and the other estate. This region has a longer growing season. It's not much of a farm region but a forestry one – half the land is forest. 

    The rye used for the Single Estate Series is a baker's rye called Dankowskie Diamond Rye- both farm distilleries grow the same rye. Typically bakers and distillers want different things from their grains: distillers want grains with high starch and low proteins (as I learned in Sweden), as they want to convert all those carbs to alcohol.

    In fact, the golden rye used in Belvedere pure takes 1 square meter of rye to make 1 bottle of vodka. For this less efficient bread-making rye for the Single Estate series, it take 1.4 square meter's worth of rye. 

    Each of the Single Estate vodkas use the same yeast, though this yeast is different from that used to ferment Belvedere Pure. 

    We visited the local farm distillery where the Lake Bartezek-grown rye is first distilled. The grains have enzymes and water added to break it down into fermentable sugars, then it is fermented for 72 hours at 35C. After fermentation, the rye beer is from 7-11% ABV. After distillation in the single, 60-plate column, the spirit ranges from 88-93% ABV. 

     

    Bartezek Distillery (3)

     

    These two vodkas in the Single Estate series were sent out to laboratories for analysis: not just the final vodkas, but also the rye beer (the wort) from each. They were sent to analytic labs as well as reviewed by tasting panels. The results were that the differences between the two were much more pronounced before distillation, but chemical differences were found between them as well as tasting differences – so if you taste the vodkas differently, it's not just all in your head.

    We went through the scientific and tasting panel analysis reports rather quickly, so hopefully the below doesn't have errors, but here were some results:

    • The main flavor differences between the two single estate vodkas were due to Maillard reaction congeners (that produce toasty sweet notes) and lipid congeners (that produce fatty, waxy aroma compounds).
    • The Lake Bartezek vodka had more impact by Maillard reaction congeners, with less lipid congener notes, and a higher amount of esters in raw spirit. 
    • The Smogory Forest vodka had more nitrogen containing hectacycles such as pyrazines (toast nutty, peanut, coffee, cooked notes), furfural (caramelized notes), 2-acetylfuran (almond honey sweet bready woody notes), and methyl 2-methyl 3-something notes (umami character). 

     

    Tasting sheet estate series

     

     The brand describes the tasting differences between the two vodkas as:

    • Smogory Forest: "a bold and savory vodka with notes of salted caramel, white pepper and honey-kissed hints. It brings out the richer flavors of rye." 
    • Lake Bartezek: "a fresh and delicate vodka with hints of spearmint, toasted nuts and black pepper. It brings out the more nuanced characteristics of rye."

    The production of the two vodkas wasn't 100% exactly the same: The way to do that would be to grow the rye in different places and distill it in the same place. For the single estate series, each vodka was distilled where it was grown. So beyond the local soil/weather conditions where the rye was grown (terroir), there were some other factors that could have influenced the final vodka's flavor. These include:

    •  The length of time the rye grew in each location was different, but I'd say this is an aspect of terroir rather than an exception. 
    • The water used for fermentation at each site. Water isn't just water, but includes different quantities of various minerals that can impact fermentation.
    • The fermentation times were different at the two distilleries.
    •  One of the worts (rye beer) was filtered after fermentation but before distillation, and the other wasn't. I'm not sure what impact this would have in a column still specifically, but it makes sense that it would be some. 

    In any case, the brand admits that this product launch and overall experiment is merely "the beginning of the exploration of terroir" in vodka, according to former Head of Spirit Creation and Mixology Claire Smith-Warner. 

    It was a terrific trip for me – y'all know how much I love distillery visits – with about five times the science as usual.  

     

      Rye Fields Lake District Poland Belvedere Trip (1)

  • Almost All the Cocktail and Spirits Books Published in 2017 for Reading or Gifting

    Behold! Here is my round-up of all the cocktails and spirits books (plus a few others) that were released in 2017. This year, beyond the annual deluge of whisky books, there are books aping the bartender lifestyle (Drink Like a Bartender, Straight Up), more narrative books (I Hear She's a Real Bitch, By the Smoke and the Smell), and recipe books seeking to simplify the process (3 Ingredient Cocktails, The Imbible, Road Soda) rather than reveal the secrets of complex drinks from top bars.

    All in all, another great year for reading about drinking. 

    The links below are to Amazon.com and if you order from there I get a little percentage from the affiliate program. However if you want to be even more awesome, you can buy my book on the Gin & Tonic too!  

     

    Best Cocktail Books 2017

     

     

    Cocktail/Bartender Lifestyle Books 

    6a00e553b3da20883401bb09d333e2970d.jpgThe Drinkable Globe: The Indispensable Guide to the Wide World of Booze by Jeff Cioletti 

    Distillery Cats: Profiles in Courage of the World's Most Spirited Mousers by Brad Thomas Parsons

    The Art of the Bar Cart: Styling & Recipes by Vanessa Dina, Ashley Rose Conway

    The Bar Cart Bible: Everything You Need to Stock Your Home Bar and Make Delicious Classic Cocktails

    Drink Like a Bartender  by Thea Engst and Lauren Vigdor 

    The Cocktail Competition Handbook by Andy Ives

    Straight Up: Where to drink & what to drink on every continent  by Joel Harrison and Neil Ridley

    Meehan's Bartender Manual by Jim Meehan 

     

    History Books

    6a00e553b3da20883401b8d2afccb8970c.jpgMuskets and Applejack: Spirits, Soldiers, and the Civil War by Mark Will-Weber 

    B.A.S.T.A.R.D.S.: Bars And Saloons, Taverns And Random Drink Stories (Volume 1)  by Brian F. Rea 

    Bay Area Cocktails: A History of Culture, Community and Craft  by Shanna Farrell

    Bumbershoots: Abridged by Dominic C Pennock

     

     

     

    Single Cocktail Books

    The Bloody Mary Book: Reinventing a Classic Cocktail by Ellen Brown 

    The Bloody Mary: The Lore and Legend of a Cocktail Classic, with Recipes for Brunch and Beyond  by Brian Bartels 

    Gin Tonica: 40 recipes for Spanish-style gin and tonic cocktails by David T Smith 

     

    Whiskey and Whisky Books

    6a00e553b3da20883401b7c925786b970b.jpgMoonshine Mixology: 60 Recipes for Flavoring Spirits & Making Cocktails by Cory Straub 

    The Way of Whisky: A Journey Around Japanese Whisky by Dave Broom 

    The Bourbon Bartender: 50 Cocktails to Celebrate the American Spirit by Jane Danger and Alla Lapushchik

    Canadian Whisky, Second Edition: The New Portable Expert by Davin de Kergommeaux 

     

    Rum Books

    The Curious Bartender's Rum Revolution by Tristan Stephenson 

    Rum Curious: The Indispensable Tasting Guide to the World's Spirit by Fred Minnick 

    Spirit of the Cane by Jared McDaniel Brown and Anistatia Renard Miller 

     

    Other Spirits

    6a00e553b3da20883401b8d2ba6be7970c.jpgMezcal: The History, Craft & Cocktails of the World's Ultimate Artisanal Spirit by Emma Janzen 

    AKVAVIT - Rediscovering a Nordic Spirit  by Sune Risum-Urth and Rasmus Poulsgaard  

    Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s Book of Bitters: The bitter and twisted history of one of the cocktail world’s most fascinating ingredients by Adam Elmegirab 

     

    Brand Books

    Hennessy: A Toast to the World's Preeminent Spirit by Glenn O'Brien 

     Fever Tree: The Art of Mixing: Recipes from the world's leading bars  by Fever Tree 

    Brewdog: Craft Beer for the People  by Richard Taylor with James Watt and Martin Dickie

     

    Recipe-Focussed Books

    6a00e553b3da20883401b7c92577e6970b.jpgThe Imbible: A Cocktail Guide for Beginning and Home Bartenders by Micah LeMon 

    Let's Get Monster Smashed: Horror Movie Drinks for a Killer Time by Jon Chaiet and Marc Chaiet 

    Code Name: Cocktail by Vicky Sweat & Karen McBurnie

    The Modern Cocktail: Innovation + Flavour by Matt Whiley

    Road Soda: Recipes and techniques for making great cocktails, anywhere by Kara Newman 

    The Poptail Manual: Over 90 Delicious Frozen Cocktails by Kathy Kordalis

    The Cocktail Guide to the Galaxy: A Universe of Unique Cocktails from the Celebrated Doctor Who Bar by Andy Heidel 

    Cooking with Cocktails: 100 Spirited Recipes by Kristy Gardner 

    The Classic & Craft Cocktail Recipe Book: The Definitive Guide to Mixing Perfect Cocktails from Aviation to Zombie  by Clair McLafferty 

    Boston Cocktails: Drunk & Told by Frederic Yarm

    Beach Cocktails: Favorite Surfside Sips and Bar Snacks

    A Spot at the Bar: Welcome to the Everleigh: The Art of Good Drinking in Three Hundred Recipes by Michael Madrusan and Zara Young

    The Wildcrafted Cocktail: Make Your Own Foraged Syrups, Bitters, Infusions, and Garnishes; Includes Recipes for 45 One-of-a-Kind Mixed Drinks by Ellen Zachos 

    The Cocktail Hour (L’Heure du Cocktail): 224 recipes  Collected by Marcel Requien Presented by Lucien Farnoux-Reynaud 

    3 Ingredient Cocktails: An Opinionated Guide to the Most Enduring Drinks in the Cocktail Canon by Robert Simonson

    Cocktail Chameleon by Mark Addison 

    Prosecco Cocktails: 40 tantalizing recipes for everyone's favourite sparkler by Laura Gladwin

    New York Cocktails by Amanda Schuster 

    Good Together: Drink & Feast with Mr Lyan & Friends by Ryan Chetiyawardana 

     

    Narrative Booze Books

    DownloadThe Angels' Share by James Markert 

    Breakfast Tea & Bourbon by Pete Bissonette

    Pure Heart: A Spirited Tale of Grace, Grit, and Whiskey by Troylyn Ball and Bret Witter

    I Hear She's a Real Bitch by Jen Agg 

    By the Smoke and the Smell: My Search for the Rare and Sublime on the Spirits Trail by Thad Vogler

     

     

    Wine Books

    Note: I don't really cover wine books and  these are just a few of them that came out this year. These are merely the ones that showed up in my mailbox. 

    The Complete Bordeaux  by Stephen Brook 

    Cork Dork: A Wine-Fueled Adventure Among the Obsessive Sommeliers, Big Bottle Hunters, and Rogue Scientists Who Taught Me to Live for Taste by Bianca Bosker

    The Dirty Guide to Wine: Following Flavor from Ground to Glass by Alice Feiring 

    6a00e553b3da20883401b8d2c11b96970c.jpgThe New Wine Rules: A Genuinely Helpful Guide to Everything You Need to Know by Jon Bonne

    Champagne: The Essential Guide to the Wines, Producers, and Terroirs of the Iconic Region  by Peter Liem 

    Larousse Wine

     

    Beer and Cider Books 

    Note: Same as wine, this isn't my primary focus but here are a few books. 

    Best Beers: the indispensable guide to the world’s beers by Tim Webb and Stephen Beaumont

    Modern Cider: Simple Recipes to Make Your Own Ciders, Perries, Cysers, Shrubs, Fruit Wines, Vinegars, and More by Emma Christensen

     

     

    Food, and Miscellaneous Related Books 

    6a00e553b3da20883401bb09a29c97970d.jpgGastrophysics: The New Science of Eating  by Charles Spence 

    Miracle Cure: The Creation of Antibiotics and the Birth of Modern Medicine by William Rosen

    Popular: The Power of Likability in a Status-Obsessed World  by Mitch Prinstein

    What She Ate: Six Remarkable Women and the Food That Tells Their Stories by Laura Shapiro 

    The Secret Lives of Color by Kassia St Clair 

     

     

     

    Not Enough Books For Ya?

    Here are all the books published in the last three years as well. 

    More Than 40 Drink Books Published in 2014 for Reading or Gifting

    All the Cocktails & Spirits Books Published in 2015, For Reading or Gifting

    All the Cocktails and Spirits Books Published in 2016 for Reading or Gifting

     

  • (Almost) All the Cocktails & Spirits Books Published in 2015, For Reading or Gifting

    Throughout the year I post new drink books to Alcademics, because I love drinking and books. Below is all of them put together so that you can make your holiday wish list for yourself or see them all together to pick presents for friends and family.

    Know of a book I missed? Let me know and I'll add it.

     

    Culture and Fun

    Party-like-a-president-2d-high-resjpg-f9aeaf69d8544ad7You Suck At Drinking: Being a Complete Guide to Drinking for Any and All Situations in Your Life, Including But Not Limited to Office Holiday Parties, Weddings, Breakups and Other Sad Times, Outdoor Chores Like Deck-building, and While in Public, Legally and Illegally  By Matthew Latkiewicz

    Toasts: The Perfect Words to Celebrate Every Occasion By June Cotner and Nancy Tupper Ling

    Party Like A President: True Tales of Inebriation, Lechery, and Mischief from the Oval Office By Brian Abrams

    The Field Guide to Drinking in America By Niki Ganong 

    You Deserve a Drink: Boozy Misadventures and Tales of Debauchery by Mamrie Hart

    A Visual Guide to Drink by Pop Chart Lab: Ben Gibson, Patrick Mulligan

     

    Vintage Reprints

    ImgresHoffman House Bartender's Guide By Charley Mahoney

    The Ideal Bartender By Tom Bullock

    W. C. Whitfield's Mixed Drinks and Cocktails: An Illustrated, Old-School Bartender's Guide by W. C. Whitfield (Author), Tad Shell (Illustrator), Joaquín Simó (Foreword)

    Shaking Up Prohibition in New Orleans: Authentic Vintage Cocktails from A to Z
    By Olive Leonhardt and Hilda Phelps Hammond

     

    Historical Books

    Cocktail Noir: From Gangsters and Gin Joints to Gumshoes and Gimlets by Scott Deitche

    UrlLost Recipes of Prohibition: Notes from a Bootlegger’s Manual by Matthew Rowley

    To Have and Have Another Revised Edition: A Hemingway Cocktail Companion by Philip Greene

    Gone with the Gin: Cocktails with a Hollywood Twist by Tim Federle

    Cocktails of the Movies: An Illustrated Guide to Cinematic Mixology by Will Francis , Stacey Marsh

    Imbibe! From Absinthe Cocktail to Whiskey Smash, a Salute in Stories and Drinks to “Professor” Jerry Thomas, Pioneer of the American Bar (Updated and Revised Edition)
    By David Wondrich

    Contraband Cocktails: How America Drank When It Wasn't Supposed To by Paul Dickson 

     

    UrlNarrative Cocktail Books

    The Cocktail Chronicles: Navigating the Cocktail Renaissance with Jigger, Shaker & Glass by Paul Clarke  

    Drinking the Devil's Acre: A Love Letter from San Francisco and her Cocktails by Duggan McDonnell

    Ten Cocktails: The Art of Convivial Drinking by Alice Lascelles 

     

    Cocktails from Specific Bars

    6a00e553b3da20883401b8d17a925a970cThe Dead Rabbit Drinks Manual: Secret Recipes and Barroom Tales from Two Belfast Boys Who Conquered the Cocktail World by Sean Muldoon, Jack McGarry, Ben Schaffer

    Experimental Cocktail Club: Paris, London & New York by Romée de Goriainoff, Pierre-Charles Cros, Olivier Bon, Xavier Padavoni 

    Cuban Cocktails: 100 Classic and Modern Drinks by Ravi DeRossi, Jane Danger, Alla Lapushchik 

    Tujague's Cookbook: Creole Recipes and Lore in the New Orleans Grand Tradition by Poppy Tooker 

    Cocktails for Dingdongs Vol. 1. by Dustin Drankiewicz and Alexandra Ensign

     

    Themed Cocktail Books

    51bB5UXlUyL._SX258_BO1,204,203,200_Summer Cocktails: Margaritas, Mint Juleps, Punches, Party Snacks, and More! By MarТa del Mar Sacasa and Tara Striano

    The Negroni: Drinking to La Dolce Vita, with Recipes & Lore  By Gary Regan

    Cocktails on Tap: The Art of Mixing Spirits and Beer By Jacob Grier

    The Tippling Bros. A Lime and a Shaker: Discovering Mexican-Inspired Cocktails by by Tad Carducci & Paul Tanguay with Alia Akkam

    Classic Cocktails by Salvatore Calabrese

    Tea Cocktails: A Mixologist's Guide to Legendary Tea-Infused Cocktails by Abigail R. Gehring

    The Mason Jar Cocktail Companion by Shane Carley

    Tiki Drinks: Tropical Cocktails for the Modern Bar  by Robert Sharp and Nicole Weston 

    The Manhattan Cocktail: A Modern Guide to the Whiskey Classic by Albert W. A. Schmid

    Paris Cocktails: An Elegant Collection of Over 100 Recipes Inspired by the City of Light  by Doni Belau 

    Wild Drinks & Cocktails: Handcrafted Squashes, Shrubs, Switchels, Tonics, and Infusions to Mix at Home by Emily Han

    The Periodic Table of COCKTAILS by Emma Stokes 

    Forager's Cocktails: Botanical Mixology with Fresh, Natural Ingredients by Amy Zavatto

    Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails: Restorative Vintage Cocktails, Mocktails, and Elixirs by Warren Bobrow

    The Essential New York Times Book of Cocktails  by Steve Reddicliffe 

    Good Things to Drink with Mr Lyan and Friends by Ryan Chetiyawardana

    The Craft Cocktail Party: Delicious Drinks for Every Occasion by Julie Reiner

     

    Whisky and Whiskey

    51YffZpl9ML._SX258_BO1,204,203,200_Whiskey: What to Drink Next: Craft Whiskeys, Classic Flavors, New Distilleries, Future Trends By Dominic Roskrow 

    Bourbon Curious: A Simple Tasting Guide for the Savvy Drinker by Fred Minnick

    Bourbon Empire: The Past and Future of America’s Whiskey by Reid Mitenbuler 

    Spirit of Place: Scotland's Great Whisky Distilleries by Charles MacLean 

    The Essential Scratch & Sniff Guide to Becoming a Whiskey Know-It-All: Know Your Booze Before You Choose  by Richard Betts

    The Birth of Bourbon: A Photographic Tour of Early Distilleries by Carol Peachee

    American Whiskey, Bourbon & Rye (New Edition): A Guide to the Nation's Favorite Spirit by Clay Risen

     

    Other Spirits

    51VHrm7ytCL._SX359_BO1,204,203,200_Bitterman's Field Guide to Bitters & Amari: 500 Bitters; 50 Amari; 123 Recipes for Cocktails, Food & Homemade Bitters  by Mark Bitterman

     

    How the Gringos Stole Tequila: The Modern Age of Mexico's Most Traditional Spirit By Chantal Martineau

    Divided Spirits: Tequila, Mezcal, and the Politics of Production  by Sarah Bowen

    Gin: The Manual by Dave Broom 

    Vermouth: The Revival of the Spirit That Created America’s Cocktail Culture by Adam Ford

    Branca: A Spirited Italian Icon by Niccolo Branca di Romanico

     

    Science-Minded

    Cognitive Cooking with Chef Watson: Recipes for Innovation from IBM & the Institute of Culinary Education

    Hidden Scents: The Language of Smell in the Age of Approximation by Allen Barkkume 

     

    Miscellany

    51u5h1zPGDL._SX258_BO1,204,203,200_Fika: The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break with Recipes for Pastries, Breads, and other Treats By Anna Brones and Johanna Kindvall

    The River Cottage Booze Handbook by John Wright

    The Beer Bible by Jeff Alworth

    Cider Made Simple: All About Your New Favorite Drink  by Jeff Alworth

    Discovering the New York Craft Spirits Boom by Heather D. Dolland

    Branding: Distilled by Cynthia Sterling

     

     

  • Making Rye Whiskey at Anchor Distilling in San Francisco

    This post is sponsored by Anchor Distilling, makers of three rye whiskeys in San Francisco, California.

    Anchor Distilling makes three unique rye whiskies in a tiny corner of a big brewery in Potrero Hill in San Francisco. I visited, probably for my 6th time, to learn the story of how it all started and how the whiskies are made. 

    In the Beginning…

    OLDPOTREROSTRAIGHTRYEWhen you speak with start-up distillers, you realize that everyone wants to make whiskey, but whiskey takes time to age, it has the expense of barrels to age it in, and it requires space in which to age it. So most new distilleries launch vodka, gin, rum, and/or other unaged products first. That wasn't the case at Anchor Distilling, which launched an aged whiskey first and then gin later.

    "We had a huge advantage in that we were all brewers, and the brewery was bankrolling all this. We didn’t have a time table to get a product out on the market. We could go until we had what we wanted," says Bruce Joseph, Head Distiller of the Anchor Distilling Company. 

    "We were lucky that we were able to spend a lot of time experimenting. There wasn’t a lot of information out there for small-scale distilling. It wasn’t what any bourbon distillers were doing." Joseph (interviewed in May 2014) had been a brewer long before Anchor's founder Fritz Maytag had the idea to launch a distillery. 

    "I was in my early 20s when I started working here. The brewery had just moved into this building. When I started working here there were 13 employees. I thought, 'I’ll do this for a little bit' and I started working here and there was a real sense that these were a group of people on a mission: making beer that the majority of people didn’t want to drink," Joseph says. 
     
    Making products (beer, then spirits) that won't be appreciated by most people ever, and not by hardly anybody for a while after they hit the market, seems to be both a point of pride and the business plan at Anchor. 
     
    Photo 4

    The still for second distillation of whisky and genever
     
    In a 2012 interview of Anchor Brewing and Distilling founder Fritz Maytag conducted by Alan Kropf  of Mutineer Magazine (and now the Director of Education at Anchor), Maytag said his success with the beer company led to an explosion of other creative beer makers, and then it became less exciting the more other people were making equally exciting beers.
     
    "It got to where our competitors were coming out with all kinds of things including things that were kinda goofy. It got to where if you brewed a chocolate-blueberry stout people would say, 'Oh another one of those,' and I didn’t find that very rewarding."
     
    [All quotes from Maytag come from the interview with Kropf, who gave me access to the recording.]
     
    A Plenitude of Points of Differentiation
     
    Bruce Joseph was there for the beginning of the experiments with distillation. He says, "Rye was perfect for Fritz because it was historical and it was hugely unpopular. No one gave a damn about rye whisky at the time." 
     
    Not only was the choice to make rye a bold one, the choice to make it in a pot still was radical. At the time, in 1993, there were no legal pot-distilled whiskies being made in America – it was all made in continuous column stills. 
     
    Furthermore, Maytag decided on a 100% malted rye whiskey to distill.  He said, "The rules say 51% rye (to be legally called rye whiskey by US law) but the rye whiskeys don’t use malted rye- they just use rye- and probably some malted barley and some corn. Just as in Scotland they require that the single malt whiskeys be made with all barley malt mash, I thought, 'Why don’t we make rye whiskey but we’ll make it with malted rye?'"
     
    He continued, "And we thought we could steal the phrase 'single-malt.' We stole it fair and square – the Scots forgot to trademark it!"
     
    Malting is the process (required for all single-malt scotch whisky but with barley instead of rye) where the grains are allowed to germinate in wet conditions, then they're dried. This produces grain that is easily fermentable. (Most bourbons use a portion of malted barley in their recipes as this helps the other grains ferment, though today enzymes also help speed the process.)
     
    Anchor Still

    The still for the first distillation of rye whiskey and genever
     
    Joseph says, "Fritz had that idea that he wanted to do 100% rye. When we did early mashes we all just loved the flavor of the malted rye. It had a certain character and certain quality that was just real attractive. (Maytag described that taste as "a richer, warmer, friendlier flavor".) Once we started doing spirit distillation it just seemed that it was bursting with flavor."
     
     
    Fake It 'Til You Make It
     
    Yet another unique feature of the rye whiskeys made at Anchor is that the fermented mash goes into the still, not a wort. Or, in English: grains are fermented with water and yeast. After fermentation the whole thing goes into the pot still at Anchor.
     
    This is unusual: In Scotland where they use pot stills for single-malts, they separate the solids from the fermented beer before distillation (and the liquid beer is called wort). This prevents those grain bits from sticking onto the side of the still during distillation and burning. 
     
    Additionally, rye is known for being very gummy and hard to distill because of that. Joseph says, "Rye is a sticky, viscous, mess – a brewer’s nightmare."
     
    Luckily, their copper still came with a built-in agitator that can be turned on to keep the liquids in the pot moving so that nothing sticks and burns. Joseph says, "The very first time we did it, if my memory serves me well, we at first used the agitator when we were heating up the mash then turned it off during distillation. It caked onto the inside of the still, and once it’s cooked onto the side you don’t get heat transfer. We learned that in the first day or two."
     
    And I bet somebody had a not-fun job of scraping out the inside of a small 600-liter still. 
     
    Age Is Just a Number, Except in California
     
    The first single-malt rye whiskey from Anchor was aged barely over one year – 13 months. This was 1996, about six years before the whole white whiskey trend came to be. 
     
    Maytag said, "I thought that after 6-8 months our whiskey was just charming. It was kind of almost sweet. And since the (federal) law said that there were no rules about how long it had to be in the barrel – it just had to state the age (if under four years)- I said why don’t we bottle it at one year old?"

    He continued, "Later we discovered we had broken the California law, which was a stupid mistake. But in California to be called whiskey, never mind rye whiskey, you have you to be in the barrel for at least 3 years, and some of the barrels have to have been charred. Which is absurd because there were no charred barrels until about 1840 or so."

    Yes, another unique feature: one of the three single-malt rye whiskeys made at Anchor is aged in a hand-made, air-dried, toasted American oak barrel, while laws for bourbon specify charred oak and that's the standard. It was a combination of Maytag's wine expertise and dedication to make a historically valid whiskey that had led him to the toasted oak decision.  

    "We called it 18th Century-Style Whiskey because we couldn’t call it rye whiskey because it wasn’t aged in charred barrels. (But) that whiskey can’t be called whiskey at any age in California because there are no charred barrels. We still have a product that in California is labelled as a “spirit”; can’t call it whiskey, it’s crazy," he said. 

    This Is How It's Done 

    Old potrero hotalingsfinalAnchor Distilling makes three rye whiskies.

    • Old Potrero Single-Malt Straight Rye Whiskey (sometimes called 19th Century whiskey)
    • Old Potrero 18th Century Style Whiskey 
    • Old Potrero Hotaling's  Single-Malt Whiskey

    They all start with the same distillate, made from fermented 100% malted rye mash. Then they all go into different barrels at the same proof, "a little below the legal limit of 125 proof," according to Joseph. 

    • The Old Potrero 18th Century Style Whiskey is aged in toasted barrels for 2.5 – 3 years, sometimes with a little bit of older whisky mixed in. Joseph says, "Toasted barrels work better for a younger whisky."
    • The Old Potrero Single-Malt Straight Rye Whiskey is aged in new charred oak barrels for 4.5 – 5 years. Joseph says, "We prefer the whisky not to age too long."
    • The Old Potrero Hotaling's  Single-Malt Whiskey is aged in used whiskey barrels. These have always been ex-bourbon barrels, but recent releases will have been aged in used charred barrels that were used to age something else (forthcoming) at Anchor. Joseph says, "We kept tasting it but for the first 7 years we didn’t like it as much as the other whiskies. But finally we tried it after about 8.5 years after we hadn't in a while and we said 'We should have been putting more of this away!' The age of the release changes each year, as there isn't very much of it around. 

    The barrels were aged on-site in Potrero Hill for many years, but now they age in Western Sonoma County in a warehouse that keeps a San Francisco-like temperature year-round. 

     

    This post about the pioneering spirits created by Fritz Maytag and his team is sponsored by Anchor Distilling.