Complete Home Bartender's Guide: 780 Recipes for the Perfect Drink [Spiral-bound]

Salvatore Calabrese (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 2002

Expect this book to soar to the top of the bestseller list in its field with the most complete coverage of the subject anywhere, from the glass to use, the ice to mix to the garnish to finish it perfectly!
Start with a world-renowned expert's unequalled instructions for preparing virtually any cocktail anyone might ask for.
Add the essential facts of bartending with a professional's master guidance for hosting any gathering in the perfect atmosphere.
Pour in an encyclopedic collection of information about every drink, including brandy, gin, rum, tequila, and vodka; whiskey and bourbon; champagne and wine; bitters and other spirits; punches, cups, and eggnogs; liqueurs and shooters; hot drinks and nonalcoholic drinks.
Mix with Calabrese's recipes for 780 of his personal favorites, from old classics like Negroni, Bellini, and Sidecar, to new and exotic modern reinventions like Cosmopolitan and Apple Martini. And that leaves 775 more to choose from. Stir in hours of fascinating insider tales about how all the classic drinks came to be, the romance of the drink, and glorious photos and art of a sparkling visual history.
Garnish with:
. Live-action pictorials of techniques such as shaking, floating, layering, muddling, blending
. Thirst-inciting color photos that display drinks at their most elegant
. Easy-to remember icons symbolizing each type of glass to use in every situation
. Concealed spiral binding that lays flat so you can follow recipes with your hands free
. Hard-cover edition jam-packed with 256 information-filled pages at an amazing value price

It's the only bartender's guide you'll ever need. Even the right ice cubes are noted!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Salvatore Calabrese is an international award-winning expert on cocktails. From his position as bar manager of the Library Bar at the prestigious Lanesborough Hotel at London's Hyde Park Corner, Calabrese has been elected Vice President of the Bartender's Guild of the United Kingdom. Among his many awards are The Compari Bartender of the Year, winner of the Lea & Perrins International Healthy Cocktails Competition, and holder of the Chevalerie du Verre Galant, and the Chevalier l'Ordre des Côteaux de Champagne.

Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 256 pages
• Publisher: Sterling (August 28, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806985119
• ISBN-13: 978-0806985114
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #728,887 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific simple instructions, with a spiral binding!!, May 8, 2003

By 

Chris T. Dong "cdong" (Alexandria, VA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Complete Home Bartender's Guide: 780 Recipes for the Perfect Drink (Spiral-bound)

This is a great bartender's book. It has all the drinks, nicely indexed by liquor type, illustrations of the proper glasses, and instructions on how to stock your own bar. Just as importantly: it has a SPIRAL BINDING. This is key, because it stays open to the same page when you're trying to mix a drink. If you're like me, you need both hands to work on the drink, not hold the book open. Try that with Mr. Boston's and it'll drive you crazy!! Seriously!

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for the up & coming home bartender, November 26, 2002

By 

petej (Auburn, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Complete Home Bartender's Guide: 780 Recipes for the Perfect Drink (Spiral-bound)

The book is well organized into sections of Brandy, Gin, Rum, ... as well as indexed by drink name. The book also contains informative descriptions and history of various spirits. Top-notch book. Buy it.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly informative guide for the first-timer or the enthusiast, September 19, 2005

By 

Optimus Prime (Madison, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Complete Home Bartender's Guide: 780 Recipes for the Perfect Drink (Spiral-bound)

I found a used copy of this book at a local bookstore, and bought it out of sheer curiosity. I knew nothing prior to mixing drinks or even how to use a shaker, and was thoroughly amused at how drinking enthusiasts around the world could come up with 780 unique -- and sometimes downright perverse and ridiculous -- names for the world's finest cocktails.

There are two things that I love about this book -- it's brilliantly arranged as a reference guide, and it's geared for both the entry-level hobbyist and the more experienced enthusiast in mind.

Unlike many other bartender guides that are tiny paperbacks or printed on thicker paper that is harder to flip-through, Salvatore Calabrese's book is built like a true index in mind: it's a hard-cover with spiral-bound pages inside printed on glossy color paper. The 780 drinks are divided into logical categories (brandy, rum, wine, vodka, shooters, punches, nonalcoholic, etc.) and each drink's mixing instructions are designed to be read in less than 30 seconds. As a quick reference, I have not seen a book that is better written with clarity and brevity in mind.

Any book I'm willing to pay for as an introduction into a hobby needs to me interested with the history, the basics on how-tos, and the fine science of becoming an enthusiast. The book's opening chapters cover everything from tools & equipment, glassware, and bar terminology to flavors & garnishes, proper techniques for juicing limes, and how to properly use ice!
Nearly every single recipe includes a brief history as to where the naming scheme caming from, and there's some description to the regional origins of certain spirits and bases as well.

I'm not planning on becoming a professional bartender, but if I were going to, I'd imagine this text would easily be one of the required reads and "keeper" books for someone truly interested in pursuing a long-term education into the fine art of drink mixing.