The Best Cocktail Books of 2007

Here's a fun, must-read for any cocktail lover who is interested in the ways drinks used to be. In Imbibe!, author David Wondrich explores the drinks of yester year and the influence of bartending legend Jerry Thomas. Included with the 100 classic cocktails are twenty new mixes created specifically for this book by today's best mixologists.

In How's Your Drink? Eric Felton (Wall Street Journal columnist) explores the history of a few select cocktails and the influence drinks have had on the general culture. Some of the drinks Felton writes about are hardly known today, but in many were once the "thing to drink" of their time and he enlightens readers to these cocktails through his visionary prose.

Cheryl Charming's books are always the bartending guides you can sit down and read, almost like a novel and this one is the best example yet. In this bartending guide Charming breaks down the drinks Hip Bartenders and Wayout Wannabes should be familiar with if they want to make the grade (or make it look like they can). Sidebars and jokes add to the fun and she even takes a small side trip into simple flair tricks that will wow patrons and guests.

Step back in time, to the speakeasies, Irish pubs and gentleman's clubs that have lasted through the decades in New York City with the picturesque coffee table book. The stories of each of the thirty bars included tell of the famous that have imbibed inside, the bartenders that have manned the bottles and the effects the establishments have had on their patrons and the surrounding neighborhoods over the years and black and white photographs illustrate the journey. Most of the bars are still open today so the book is also a great primer to a NYC bar tour in which you can find your favorite new haunt.

One of the new bartending guides released this year, the Ultimate Bartending Guide is a great addition to anyone's bar library. Written by Ray Foley, the guide has over 1,300 cocktails inside a wipe-dry cover that can handle most use inside the bar. The chapter on home bartending has some helpful, yet rare, advice on stocking for different sized parties.

In the second edition of the Everything Bartender's Book Cheryl Charming has updated the recipe list with modern mixes that bartenders today should be familiar with and many that are unknown gems of modern cocktails. Scattered throughout the guide are bits of cocktail history, trivia and tips that are interesting and fun and will keep you scouring all of the pages.

It's not a book, but this DVD is just as noteworthy as any on this list. In the first volume of his video series, mixologist Tony Abou-Ganim takes viewers through the shaking, muddling and stirring of some of our favorite cocktails. Abou-Ganim is as charming as ever and has numerous tips that will have your cocktails tasting better than ever.

Michael Nagy has created an excellent resource for bartenders who want to go beyond just mixing drinks and step into the realm of mixologist. The Cocktail Rediscovered includes cocktail recipes and easy to reference descriptions of various ingredients designed to open the reader's mind to the flavors inside the bottles.

While this is not a new book, but a reprint of a cocktail book authored by Edward Spencer in 1898, it is one to take notice of it. The Flowing Bowl is simply a fascinating look at 19th Century drinking and the cocktails, beer and wine the author experienced.