Drinkology: The Art and Science of the Cocktail

If I were looking for a professional cocktail "bible" I'd do some research ahead of time to make sure that what I got was the bartender's equivalent of a scholarly work. The fact that Drinkology: The Art and Science of the Cocktail was issued by a publisher of art books should give the browser a clue that it's not intended as an encyclopedia but as the subjective views of the author about mixed drinks--the ART of the cocktail. Get it? I won't quibble with the criticisms of some of the other reviewers because they just aren't relevant. I don't like to be personal, but do any of those critics have a sense of humor? The book is just a pleasure to read, chock-a-block with lucid, witty descriptions and opinions. The writing is so good that you don't have to be fond of drinking to enjoy it--but I may be going too far, and the author might strenuously--though with astringent humor--disagree.

As noted by other reviewers, this is a very elegant and functional book with an eclectic collection of sometimes hard to find recipes. I'm not sure why someone would have issues with the omission of pictures (though there are a handful of drawn illustrations). I believe the point of the book is for you to make your own cocktail and see what it looks like. As the title suggests, cocktail making is an art, but it is not related to photography otherwise. I am a huge fan of Robert Hess' Drinkboy website but I am disappointed in his selective review of this book. I am in full agreement with his analyses of these recipes (I also view the Manhattan and Old Fashioned recipes as low points in an otherwise great book, and the evaluation of the Mai Tai is nothing short of strange). HOWEVER-- what he fails to mention is that the writeup on these drinks explains that the recipe presented is a variation, and they go on to say that club soda in an Old Fashioned is sometimes considered a "travesty" and that one may feel absolutely free to omit the cherry syrup from their Manhattan (guilding the lily in my opinion) as well as use Bourbon (definitely). These handful of notable shortcomings aside, I believe this book more than redeems itself in other areas. It has several welcome features not present in many bartending guides, especially the description of what a drink tastes like (so as to know what to expect) and the favorites section, and while they are often traditional in their approach to making cockatils, they will just as often go with something they *like* as opposed to something "authentic," which I applaud as honest--and they ALWAYS encourage experimentation. Drinkology is not afraid to be biased in their presentation of recipes, but at least they let you know this, and by extension let you know that they have actually *tried* all of these drinks, which I also think is noteworthy among bartending guides. And as for the indexing scheme, I definitely prefer recipes arranged by base spirit as opposed to by name--if you're looking up a drink you've only heard of, use the index. I am not (yet) familiar with the books Mr. Hess recommends in his writeup, but especially for a beginning cocktail enthusiast, it would be hard to go wrong with Drinkology.

I already had one of those 1200+ recipe books, I wanted something that would spend a little time on each drink, explaining what it's like and how it's made, including any interesting history and a bit of editorial. That's exactly what this book is, and I'm glad I picked it out of the shelf of drink recipe books at the bookstore. I love just looking through this book, reading the little paragraph that accompanies many of the recipes. One useful section: their list of favorite drinks. It's easy to get overwhelmed by the number of drinks out there that nobody ever makes. It's nice to have a place to start.

I am not a cocktail snob like some of the reviewers here (who sound like nothing so much as chili or barbecue fanatics, usually men, who see themselves as keepers of the true flame). But I like a good cocktail, and I like cocktail guides. This is a classic of its kind.Drinkology is an excellent, highly respectable bar guide that is very much in the spirit of Julia Child: approach classic recipes with an open and respectful mind, and rely on your own (finely honed) abilities to create your own version.It is also a beautiful book and one meant to be used: a handsome waterproof cover, bound to lie flat and with a helpful grosgrain ribbon marker. It represents careful thought about reference works and is really state-of-the-art. The designer and the author clearly know books. One uses Drinkology, but one also enjoys the "feel" of the book. It's also very well written and gently funny and makes a wonderful armchair companion. A great gift--for others or for yourself.

I got a copy of this as a birthday gift, and am buying more now to give to others. Actually I'm writing this only because the other review (Pieter in South Africa) is so off the mark. This is not a coffee table book, but a handbook on how to mix drinks, and as such it is the best I've seen. It has a really elegant design, and when we tried several of the drinks (from the "favorites" list in the back) they all came out great. A friend of mine who said he'd never made a mixed drink made a wonderful Manhattan. And it's more than just recipes, it's entertaining to read as well. So if you want to drink cocktails, rather than just look at them, I think this is the best choice. Oh, by the way, I only found one misspelling.