Customer Reviews

Jigger, Beaker and Glass: Drinking Around the World

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It should be noted first, that this book is a faithful reprint (all except the title and cover :-) of the classic "The Gentleman's Companion", first published in 1939. That first edition came as a two book set: "Exotic Drink Book", and "Exotic Cookery Book". The former is the book here in question, the latter has been likewise reprinted under the title "Knife, Fork, and Spoon : Eating Around the World".

If you are expecting the same old "wad-o-drinks" type of book here, then you will be quite surprised in what you find. Mr. Baker has a dry wit, as well as a cunning charm about him. And he exercises it well as he relates to his readers the various drinks that he has collected through his travels and adventures. The recipes often consist of more prose then raw ingredients, which makes them both more interesting to browse through but at the same time slightly more difficult to work from.

For a taste of his style, here is just one of the drink recipes from this book:

SANTIAGO NIGHTCAP, from a STAY in SANTIAGO de CUBA,
in the EARLY SPRING of 1930
------This is another favour passed along to this field
representative and wine tester by the late Senor Facuno
Bacardi, it being his primary thought to donate something
to woo sleep and restore the slightly frayed physical
assembly. It is a simple drink, and would also make a
fine picker-upper. . . . Take 1 1/2 jiggers of Gold
Seal Bacardi rum, add 1 pony of orange curaco and the
yolk of 1 egg. Shake hard with cracked ice and strain
into a large saucer champagne glass.

While the formatting of these recipes may make it a bit more difficult to glean direct recipes from them, they do present a provocative and insightfull snapshot of the cocktail world of those days. Few books, before or since, have even approached this wonderfully eclectic performance.

I highly recommend this book for anybody who has an interest in classic cocktails.

Charles H. Baker, author of The Gentleman's Companion, was in an enviable position; free to roam the world, with style, before modernity rolled the earth flat for commerce. It's a book with cocktail recipes but one can do a lot with a drink in hand. The recipes are more remembered than ordered (there is an index) & the story linked to each cocktail is as important. This is not to say that the recipes are not great, they are terrific & worth the trouble to make right, per Bakers instructions.

Many of the recipes in this book vary considerably from how the drink of the same name is prepared today. The author often calls for ingredients which can no longer be procured, but that is to be expected. For the serious cocktail enthusiast, this book is a must-have, and this inexpensive reprint means you won't want to kill yourself if you spill grenadine on it.

The previous person to review this book makes a good point, too. This is not simply a formula book of recipes, but THAT is exactly what makes it a great read. Another perfect example of this is "Cocktail Recipes from the Nineteenth Century - The Flowing Bowl", by Spencer (another recent reprint of a rare old cocktail book.)

Received the book in a timely manner, book was as described. No markings in the book--book was brand new. Easy transaction!

This book is a pure joy. How Baker went about experimenting with and investigating drinks is a model for libationers everywhere. In fact, it is a model for how to approach any subject, with verve and determination and an open mind. He got quite sauced a few times over the years, but it did not affect his wonderful comments nor warp his recipes. It's a real treasure--though I like the original title better, despite its subtle unpolitically correct nuance. Hence 4 starts instead of the 5 I would have given if I had reviewed the original book.

A wonderful journey, by a true bon vivant, around the world and into some of its most famous, and infamous bars to sample the spiritous joys within.
The classical work on the classic cocktails and drinks, and many other beverages besides that didn't quite make that lofty status, but still deserve to be tippled occaisionally too.
Loved it, loved it, loved it, please reprint the south american epic now please, I await with baited breath.

If you're a vintage cocktail buff, you gotta have this book in your collection. The stories with each drink are the best part. The drink recipes are just a bonus.

this book was written in a time when some people led lives that were interesting and full of wonder,w/o tv and other modern distractions,they were able to record the things they saw,did and experienced through all the senses.This book will help you go back to times like that terrific JP

Very good read, and good recipes too. Every recipe has a story along with it. Neat.