A NOTE ON THE CONTEMPORARY COCKTAIL PALATE
Tastes have changed over the centuries of cocktail-making, and in keeping with modern practices we’ve updated many of the recipes in this book to reflect a contemporary palate.
Sugar has been reduced or eliminated completely when it has been feasible to do so. When we do use it, we like to use unrefined sugars or honey. See specific sweetener notes on pages 256 and 257.
Base spirits are emphasized, not just fillers. With today’s high-quality artisanal liquors, cocktailers want all the flavors and elements to be detectable. For instance, see our re-balanced Last Word (page 85) and Negroni (page 91).
Bitter is in, thanks to artisan bitters, amari, Aperol, and Campari. For an alluring gateway to this flavor profile, fix an Intro to Aperol (page 165), and check out our bitter-forward list of cocktails (page 228).
Drink portions are manageable. As chef Thomas Keller argues, there’s a law of diminishing returns to every dish—the more bites you take of it, the less exciting it becomes. Same with drinks. Many of the recipes in this book are 3 to 4 ounces. Make a few of them, rather than one gonzo cocktail. Beware that many kitchen stores still sell oversize martini glasses. See our glassware recommendations (page 255).
We list specific brands for our cocktail recipes, not as an endorsement but to provide recipes that work. There are just too many options on today’s market to not be specific—note that if you use different bottles, recipes may need adjusting. We arrived at our choices through research, recommendations, and trial and error—always searching for good value bottles in each category. We do not have relationships with any of the brands we mention. While we strongly encourage you to seek out small, handcrafted liquor made in your state, we opted for quality brands with wide distribution.