Fix the Pumps [Paperback]

Darcy S. O'Neil (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2010

Fix the Pumps is a historical account of the golden age of soda fountains including over 450 recipes that made soda-pop America's most popular drink.

Recently nominated for a Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Award (Best New Cocktail / Bartending Book of the Year)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Read it not just for those revelatory recipes, but for its provocative take on their cultural, economic, and medical impact on generations gone by. You'll never think of soda fountains as wholesome Happy Days nostalgia again. --Jeff "Beachbum" Berry

Time travel never tasted so good. --Craig "Dr. Bamboo" Mrusek

Reading Fix the Pumps is like finding the key for that painted-over door in the corner you've never really paid any attention to, unlocking it and revealing a whole furnished room you never even realized was there. --David Wondrich author of Imbibe!

From the Back Cover

Fix the Pumps tells the real history of the soda fountain, starting with its invention, through its golden era of creativity and its dependence on patent medicine and narcotics. The history of the soda fountain is as vibrant as any other period in American history.Fix the Pumps documents a wealth of information on soda fountain techniques, employed in the 1800s, and includes recipes that span the spectrum from simple concoctions to complex formulations using ingredients like aromatic elixir, Lactart and Acid Phosphate.This information is invaluable to anyone who enjoys creative drinks and recipes.

Product Details

• Paperback: 196 pages
• Publisher: Art of Drink (May 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0981175910
• ISBN-13: 978-0981175911
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 8.3 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #256,498 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Darcy S. O'Neil was born in Sarnia, Ontario and spent many of those years living near the beach. A cold Canadian beach, but a beach none-the-less. After high school, the decision of a career choice was whittled down to chemistry or the culinary arts. Chemistry was the winner. At the time it seemed logical that laboratory skills were more transferable to the kitchen than cooking skills to the lab. Four years later, he received his diploma in chemistry.

After a six year stint working in a world class oil and gas research facility the time for change arrived, via a downsizing notice. After a couple of false starts in the pharmaceutical and information technology worlds the possibility of going to chef school returned. During a period of quiet contemplation, and a few drinks, he was whacked with the epiphany stick and the marriage of chemistry and bartending dawned upon him.

With a little research into the world of mixology and a completely stocked home bar, that rivaled many restaurants, and an irritating amount of clutter, the fusion of science and art began. As he rifled through the classic drinks and modern interpretations--plus the occasional vile concoction--the chemistry skills started to refine the art. A whole new world of experimental flavours opened up in a way that satisfied his experimental curiosity and his culinary cravings. A bartender was born.

With this new found knowledge in hand, Darcy set about looking for a place to apply these skills. His optimism was soon dashed when he discovered that very few, if any, bars shared his passion for fine drinks. Darcy bided his time, learning the ropes, while trying to make the best of a poor situation. At every turn Darcy would try to make a bad cocktail slightly better, and eventually people started to notice.

Darcy turned to the Internet and started writing about tasteful cocktail on his website, Art of Drink. It started slowly with a few people taking notice. Then more people latched on when he transcribed a copy of Jerry Thomas' Bartenders Guide from the 1800s, and placed it on his website. From there it has grown to over 3,000 unique readers per day.

Currently, Darcy works part-time in the Robarts Molecular Pathology lab at the University of Western Ontario and bartends occasionally. He can also be found writing about original cocktail creations and other drink related topics at Art of Drink and promoting his book Fix the Pumps.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for mixologists November 9, 2010

By Martin Doudoroff

Format:Paperback

The cocktail renaissance has been about the rediscovery and evangelism of the history, technique, achievements, personalities, arcana and culture of roughly 200 years of American mixed drink tradition (and, to be fair, its evolutionary strains in other parts of the world). The last fifteen years has delivered a growing stream of new books on the topic. Most fall into the evangelism category, some into the rediscovery category and some are just noise. Atop the rediscovery category--the domain of scholarly work--rest a tidy handful of books that can be termed revelatory. David Wondrich's Imbibe! is a particularly prominent example, to which I would add--in no particular order--Jeff Berry's Sippin' Safari, Gary Regan's Joy of Mixology, Lowell Edmund's Martini, Straight Up, Wayne Curtis' ...and a Bottle of Rum, Dale DeGroff's Craft of the Cocktail, and Ted Haigh's Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. I'm sure I'm unintentionally omitting some peers, but I'm equally sure these are as essential reading as exists.

To this list we can now add Darcy O'Neil's Fix the Pumps. Rather than being a book about cocktails, Fix the Pumps addresses the topic of the pharmacy soda fountain, the history of which is contemporary with, closely parallel to, and frequently intersects with that of the bar and the mixed drink. As O'Neil documents, the soda fountain was the cocktail's equally reprobate and mercurial cousin. Quite simply, reading Fix the Pumps will plug a gaping hole in your perspective that you most likely didn't even know existed.

The book is concise. The core historical portion fits within about fifty pages and makes no attempt to be exhaustive. Rather, it erects a framework of essential facts with enough details to establish character before plunging into another hundred fifty pages of practical matter (e.g., how to properly produce soda water or concoct a true egg cream) and recipes for syrups, chemical additives, and other flavorings essential to the pharmacies of yore and, in many cases, adjunct to practitioners of today's cocktail renaissance.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The most important book on mixology and cocktail history since David Embury's in 1948 November 21, 2010

By Philip Duff

Format:Paperback

Darcy, the world's most-read cocktail blogger, finally gets this seminal work into print. The title of this review is no exaggeration: FtP is the missing link in mixology history: the entire and complete history of soft- aqnd carbonated-drinks, the lost art of the soda-jerk, what happened to bartenders during Prohibition, how narcotic and stimulant drugs got into sodas (and bar-rooms, and by extension, contemporary culture), how the stage was set for "girl drinks", Tiki and the party-drinks of the exploding 1960s singles-bar culture, and much, much more. And if that weren't enough, O'Neil includes step-by-step guides to making your own sodas of all kinds, and hundreds of formerly extinct recipes. And if THAT weren't enough, O'Neil has the temerity to be a funny, engaging and passionate author too, the bastard. No bartender can call himself a serious craftsperson if they have not read this book, and no consumer will swallow a Coke quite so carelessly after reading it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely fantastic. January 10, 2011

By Christopher Conatser

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Darcy's blog has always been a favorite of mine, for its well-researched and deeply analytical information. Once again he's one step ahead of the rest of liquid culture, delving into--and bringing back the best of--the forgotten world of the drugstore soda fountain. A vividly informative book: it seems like every page contains at least one fact that's downright revelatory, completely revising the way I'd looked at a myriad of subjects. For the bartender, the chemist, the owner of a disused soda fountain, or any other enthusiast, this can be the gateway to a whole new world. Bravo, Mr. O'Neil. And thank you.