The Curious Bartender Volume 1: The artistry and alchemy of creating the perfect cocktail Hardcover – October 10, 2013

This book is great! I was looking for something to teach me how to make the traditional cocktails and give me a place to start with crafting my own. This book has some great standard recipes and some really weird elaborate ones. It encourages you to experiment with different things and a lot of the recipes can be used as a foundation for making your own recipes. The pictures look great and the book itself is well made and beautiful. Each type of liquor has its own section and introduction which gives a story and information about the liquor/drinks associated with it. Glad I got this over a simple cocktails recipe book that I almost bought. My favorite drink I learned to make from the book so far: Ramos Gin Fizz - Tastes like a lemon sorbet smoothie!

One year ago I left my corporate career to pursue a place in the bartending world. I had the drive, desire, and creativity but little or no experience outside of my consumption on the other side of the bar.I needed to cram a decade worth of experience into a few months and did so by jumping in with both feet by apprenticing at the best gastropub in town and simultaneously slinging drinks at an upscale restaurant. While I was honing the physical skills needed I had a universe of information to absorb. Enter Tristan's beautifully designed, easy to process, informative and inspiring book.It not only gave me a firm grasp on the history of the world I was now in but helped shaped the future of where it is heading.Every piece of information is valuable. The technique easily explained.Trista not only puts the knowledge in your head but challenges you to use it and help forge the next generation of true drink makers.Well done sir!

This is a great book. It gives you all the classic cocktails, and pairs each with an inventive version by the author. Some of the inventive versions can't be made without expensive equipment, but most can, and worst-case scenario you are provided with a window into how these things are done at a high level.I am taking one star off because of the preponderance of typos. It's a little upsetting that such a beautiful and useful book is riddled with such silly little mistakes that detract from the effect. The errors weren't such that it made it hard to read, and the writing is otherwise very colorful, clear, and engaging.

I really loved this book because it explains all the high tech procedures on how to be able to do them yourself, like how to make your own bitters. The author also gives background as to where the original cocktails might have originated and throws in his two cents on how he prefers his cocktails. The cocktails in this book mainly consist of the original cocktails from previous generations. The book cover and art are amazing and it looks great on my bar shelf. Great read too.

A gift for my husband who is curious about everything and a straight up recipe book would not have done at all! This book is perfect - not only do you get the cocktail recipe, you get the history and the story behind the drink, and the reason why the ingredients and flavors work together. The cover feels beautiful and the pictures are well styled. Highly recommend this book for those looking for a bit more from their cocktail recipe book.

I adore this book. For bartenders, mixologists or just those interested in spirits, it is a great reference book. From dry freezing and dry ice to infusing liqueurs and syrups, this book is a great go-to and has beautifully printed photos on a lot of the pages. I am kind of a 'nerd' when it comes to bartending so I got a kick out of this. A good friend of mine who is a well-known mixologist also uses it as a reference frequently and has mentioned to me time and time again how useful it has been. Highly recommend.

Tristan's approach to cocktails is thoughtful and well grounded in science as well as art. The book starts off with an explanation of basic cocktail-making techniques and then moves into various recipes. The recipes are laid out in an interesting fashion: first, Tristan describes a classic cocktail or a basic version of a cocktail; immediately following is a more complex variant of the cocktail using various techniques such as bottle-fermentation (Ramos Champagne Fizz), or using a Roto-vap (Insta-Age Rob Roy). Overall, an excellent addition to the library of anyone who is serious about their cocktails.

Beautiful book, the cover has an interesting texture which is a little bit of a wow factor - makes a great gift. Lots of photos and a huge selection of cocktails with great recipes. My fav is the whiskey sour. Love it!