Classic Cocktails: The home bartender’s guide to mixing spirits and liqueurs: 150 Sensational drink recipes shown in 250 fabulous photographs

409 Pages·2013·9.53 MB·English

by  Stuart Walton

CLASSIC
COCKTAILS

C L A S S I C
COCKTAILS
THE HOME BARTENDER’S GUIDE TO MIXING SPIRITS AND LIQUEURS: 150 SENSATIONAL
DRINK RECIPES SHOWN IN 250 FABULOUS PHOTOGRAPHS
Stuart Walton
Contents
Introduction
GIN AND VODKA
RUM AND TEQUILA
WHISKY AND BRANDY
OTHER SPIRITS AND LIQUEURS
CHAMPANGE, WINES, BEER AND CIDER
NON-ALCOHOLIC DRINKS
COCKTAIL BASICS
Glossary
Index
Introduction
We may never know at what point in history alcohol was first used to fulfil
what would become its time-honoured role as intoxicant. What is certain,
however, is that the first such use arose from the discovery of the effects of
fermentation on fruit, honey or sticky-sweet palm sap.
First alcohol
The ancient Egyptians used fermented grains for making prototype forms of
beer. Wine came after beer, but was to become of crucial cultural and religious
importance to the civilizations of Egypt, and classical Greece and Rome. It was
used as a sacrament in orgiastic celebrations of the festivals of Dionysos, the
Greek god of nature (Bacchus to the Romans).
In addition to its ceremonial and cultural role, wine was also used for culinary
purposes. It was capable of making tough meat more supple and removed excess
salt from meats that had been preserved. Wine vinegar, its alcohol lost to acetic
acid, may have been the first recourse, but wine itself appears in sauce recipes in
the historically important late Roman cookbook of Apicius (3rd century AD).
Some cocktails, such as Rocky Mountain, call for specific brands to achieve their unique taste.
Distillation
The next important step was the discovery of distillation – the extraction of
The next important step was the discovery of distillation – the extraction of
higher alcohols from fermented drinks, using the action of heat to vaporize them.
Unlike fermentation, it is a simple process, largely because it is much easier to
control.
Alcohol has a lower boiling point than water, so it vaporizes into steam before
the water content in the wine starts to boil. When the steam hits a cool surface, it
forms a condensation of liquid with a much higher proportion of alcohol than the
wine.
Wine was held to have a range of medicinal properties, and the extraction of
what was held to be the wine’s soul or spirit, through distillation, led to the
naming of distillates as ‘spirits’.
First distillates
The earliest distillates were of wine, since it had a more salubrious image than
beer; grain distillation to produce whiskies and neutral spirits followed in the
Middle Ages. Many of these prototypes were flavoured with fruits, herbs or
spices, in order to enhance the medicinal properties. The additives also masked
the raw taste and off-putting aroma of the unadulterated liquor.
Enhance the anise flavour in a cocktail by dropping in a whole star anise.
Spirits
The first spirit to be taken seriously as an object of connoisseurship was
probably the brandy of the Cognac region of France. People noticed that the
superior, mellower spirit produced by the light wines of Cognac responded
particularly well to ageing in oak casks.
particularly well to ageing in oak casks.
Cask-aged spirits derive every aspect of their character from the maturation
period they undergo in wood. They do not continue to develop in the bottle.
Scottish and Irish whiskies soon rose to similar prominence. Their differing
production processes resulted in distinct regional styles. Many varieties of
whisky are made across the world these days.
Cocktails that do not contain alcohol include this Lemonade on Ice.
Liqueurs
Where a distilled drink stops being a spirit and turns into a liqueur is an elusive
question. The one constant is that liqueurs have some aromatizing element.
Some have histories at least as venerable as cognac and Scotch, such as those
produced by the old French monastic orders, such as Bénédictine.
The first and greatest cocktail era, which arrived with the advent of the Jazz
Age in the 1920s, rescued many traditional liqueurs from obscurity. The
Benedictine monks may be a little shocked to hear of their revered creation
being mixed with applejack, gin, apricot brandy and maple syrup, and renamed
the Mule’s Hind Leg.
Cocktails in wonderful colours, such as Rite of Spring, will never fail to impress.
How to use this book
The main section of the book consists of over 150 cocktail recipes, arranged by
type, so that you can learn how to make a wonderful variety of drinks and
happily expand your repertoire. It also includes a fabulous selection of non-
alcoholic cocktail recipes.
We will then take a look at what equipment and glasses are needed to make
the cocktails and what techniques should be learned, including a detailed guide
to making attractive garnishes.
Whether you’re throwing a cocktail party or having a quiet drink after work,
the drinking world is your oyster. Do it wisely, and have fun.