Maran Illustrated Bartending

I was never a terribly big fan of alcohol, so when I was introduced to such strong and bland drinks as the Vodka Tonic, it did little to persuade me. Then, I had the Midori Sour, which hardly had any alcoholic taste to it. Of course, for those who know the Midori Sour, it's stigmatized as a "chick drink" or something females prefer. This is because the Midori Sour is not a heavy drink and contains a small amount of liquer. But the idea of getting annihilated or intoxicated for the so-called "buzz" and acting foolish, did not impress me. If I was to drink alcohol, I was gonna drink it for the flavor. I had plenty of other cocktails, besides the Midori Sour, but I just couldn't find anything else that rivaled its simple, yet flavorful combination. I thought, "Surely, there must be more alcoholic drinks out there, that actually taste similarly delightful." Unfortunately, learning about cocktails can get easily frustrating, because there are few resources that present a solid introduction of it. Most of the books I checked out, would refer to one of millions of different liquors (vodka, bourbon, whiskey, rum, cachaca, etc) as ingredients, without explaining the differences, and popular choices of brands. All of this is nothing short of overwhelming to beginners, who are looking to mix something sophisticated and beyond stuff served in plastic red cups. One of the reasons why I refuse to purchase cookbooks, is due to the endless array of ingredients I've never heard of. These cookbooks don't tell you where to purchase them, or what brands they personally used, etc, etc. On the contrary, this book on bartending, executes a magnificent job of introducing you to the art of cocktails. It provides simple instructions, step by step, and it also educates you about all the techniques employed in this book, such as the creation of various garnishes, muddling fruits, layering effects, making simple syrup, etc. There's even a glossary of all the liquors and ingredients listed in this book. And best of all, everything is accompanied with pictures! I've yet to come across another bartending book that is this complete. Most books fail to provide any pictures, leaving your imagination to wonder the result, and whether you made it properly and what not. Furthermore, the lack of visuals offer little to no incentive for you to make the cocktail. Trust me when I tell you that this book will save you loads of time and confusion that I endured when I first got into mixing drinks. This is a fantastic book, and I recommend it to everybody seeking to upgrade their bartending skills. Having said all that, I'm not saying this is the be all, end all bartending bible. But it's as close as you can get to it, relative to other books in current times. I'm absolutely surprised at how useless and unfriendly 99% of the bartending resources are, right now. Heck, I wish a publisher came and offered me a chance to make a bartending book, because I'd explain everything I

I only drink occasionally, and wanted to learn more about mixed drinks. I found this book to be an excellent reference for learning the art of bartending. It provides you information on everything from the types of glassware to the various garnish techniques. If you are setting up a bar at home and want to know the tools and techniques needed, this is the book for you. Also, the recipes are good too.

I went to Barnes and Noble and looked at probably 50 bartending guides. This one is by far the best. Other guides contain lots of recipes but none is organized as well as this one. It shows a type of drink, then variations on the theme, with names of drinks, which really helps in remembering what you made (if you can by the time you're done). It shows how to garnish, how to choose decent glassware, etc. all with nice pictures. Any good bartender knows that garnish is more than half the battle. Definitely a keeper and a bargain too.

This is the best book I've seen for mixed drinks. The martini recipe selection is especially wonderful, and all the pictures are beautiful. It's a big help to see what the drink will look like before deciding whether to make it.