Cocktail Codex: Fundamentals, Formulas, Evolutions Kindle Edition

While these authors first book Death and Co was the book that first got me into cocktails (what took my bar from a 10 to 50 bottle bar), this book is a lovely logical next step for these authors. Have read both of these books front to back, and here is what I like more about each one:Best about Cocktail Codex:-Matured Theory Behind Cocktail Building: With 5-10 years more experience on the authors hand, they very clearly explain the 6 'classes' of cocktails with simple words and explanations that just make sense. They did have classes of cocktails in their first book, but years of sipping and mixing have matured those into the best categories I have seen in a book to-date (just as Martin Cate categorized rums clearly in Smugglers Cove). I feel like I can create cocktails myself using these cocktails templates/classes better than I could with their first book.-Slightly Better Bottle Recommendations: more pages spent on what bottles to get in each category, and the authors focus on bottles that are more obtainable to find in an everyday market and not just the NYC market.-Vodka Cocktails not Ignored: the industry has matured to accepting vodka cocktails again as an important part of American cocktail history, and they now have classic vodka cocktails where this category was purposefully withheld in their first book-New Techniques Explored: centrifuging, smoking, clarifying, and new techniques that have been explored since their first book are detailed in this new book. Got to stay on top of your game with the latest and greatest.-Less 'Crazy' Recipes: The recipes in this book very generally call for slightly less infused spirits and crazy modifiers. I think I can make many more %-wise from this book with my existing bar (albeit large) compared to Death and Co.... or maybe my bar has just grown since I got their first book.Best about Death and Co:-Techniques and Bar Basics: the techniques section of this book is simply amazing. Best in class. Multiple pages on how to stir correctly, multi drink stirs, shake. If you could give just one book to a newbie, this is the book, largely due to clearly explained basics directly from the industry leaders.-Classic and Vintage Cocktail Section: If you are looking for recipes for the most famous cocktails, and the ones where someone new to this hobby would want to start, this section is amazing!-Crazy Recipes: Following the classic and vintage cocktail section, you get hundreds of cocktails from their own menu. I havn't heard of many other world famous bars printing exact recipes for their creations, so this is an incredible resource. Just know some of these recipes are almost unobtainably difficult (infused spirits, mixes with recipes printed in the book that have components with recipes printed another place so multi-step ordeals), but that is what makes many of these cocktails so amazingBest about Both:-Stunning Photos: both are coffee table material-Solid Hardback Build Quality: both from 10 speed press, they don't skimp on quality-Authors leading the industryIf you can buy only one cocktail book, get (1) death and Co first. If you can get two cocktail books, add (2) Cocktail Codex. After that, want: (3a) tiki get Smugglers Cove, want (3b) amari drinks get Amaro: The Spirited...., want (3c) science & chemistry get Liquid Intelligence, want (3d) cocktail history and bar logistics get Meehan's Bartender Manual, the list of amazing books goes on!Amazing work Alex, Nick, & David!

Book is great but whose stupid idea is it to put stickers on a cloth hardback. I beg you to quit struggling to get this crap off my book. Messes up the experience of getting a nice bar book.

Reading this book is like going to 4 years of College for Cocktails, then acquiring your Masters in Mixology, and finally getting your Doctorate of Daiquiris.Most cocktail books (and cookbooks for that matter) are simply just recipes that you can follow like a robot to make a halfway decent concoction but not really understand WHY the drink is good. Cocktail Codex breaks the science of mixology down into such an easy to understand concept, it will crack your head wide open and fill it with liquid genius. I won't spoil it too much, but they essentially divide all cocktails into one of 6 categories, and go on to explain what each of those categories is, why it is, and how to create infinite variations from that category. For example, a Martini is just a spirit with some aromatized wine (Vermouth). You can make it with Gin or Vodka. However, if you change up the spirit and the wine, you can get tons of other drinks, such as a Manhattan.After reading this book and practicing daily cocktail concoction for about six months, I can say without embarrassment that I make better cocktails than 95% of all bars. And dozens of my friends have told me this, so I honestly don't feel bad posting it. The only downside is, it's hard for me to enjoy cocktails out at the bar now because they don't taste as good as mine and I can tell exactly why (most frequent problem? Bartender stirred the ice to long and over diluted the drink!)Just buy it. It's the only cocktail book you'll ever need.

I received the metric system (european?) version of this book. I did not support the French Revolution or thier heavy handed attempts to get me to count in 10s, learn latin, and embrace secularism. Contemplate that over your next .5 deciliter cocktail.

I am a bartender and craft cocktails are my life. I have many books on mixology and bartending, but this one is my favorite. It is as beautiful as it is informative, and across many side-to-side comparisons, its recipes turn out the best every single time. It is as appropriate for the layman seeking a new coffee-table book as it is for the bar owner or mixologist. That is the highest recommendation I can give.

The Death & Co. book was the first serious cocktail book I ever purchased, and the writing style is just so approachable. The way that cocktails are broken down by root recipes is ingenious, and it absolutely makes sense. There are plenty of recipes in here that are easy enough to construct with a well stocked bar and this is the perfect accompaniment to the Death & Co. cocktail book. It is no surprise to me that this book won book of the year at the James Beard awards because it is so amazingly well written. After reading the thing cover to cover, it is without a doubt the best cocktail book I own. I cannot stress how highly recommended this book is.

A great followup to the Death & Co. Cocktail Book with a lot of focus on drink families and how to modify their bases and flavor accents. It gave me new ways of thinking about the Bloody Mary and the Golden Cadillac, for example, as they break everything down into 6 families. In each section was a related part on bar technology -- everything from advanced syrup making, cocktail smoking, and carbonation -- as well as spirits overviews with recommendations. While recipes aren't the strong suit here like their first book, there are definitely some gems worth making.

I brought it as present for my husband.He loves this book, so much information about cocktails preparation. This book is just enough for perfect home bar.Gives you inspiration and dip understanding of subject.

Beautiful and informative book. Useful for all readers but probably best for people with especial interest in cocktails and who already know their way around a well stocked bar. Laughably cheap for such a beautiful hardback (I got it for GBP11 - ABSURD).

Absolutely first class. Quite obviously written by people who know what they’re talking about & at the top of their profession. Feels like a natural extension from liquid intelligence by Dave Arnold. Finally, a bar book that covers citrus fruit varieties, a rare find.Indispensable resource for bartenders.

Builds on the original death and co book, must have bartenders book.

Bought as a present