The New Craft of the Cocktail

One of the leaders of the craft cocktail movement, award-winning author and former Rainbow Room bartender DeGroff was instrumental in saving the cocktail from premade sour mix and watery wine spritzers. Originally published in 2002, with DeGroff’s take on 100 of the most important cocktails, this work quickly became a bartending bible. Almost 20 years later, DeGroff has completely revised his seminal work, now with 500 recipes plus new photography by Krieger. In addition to the canon of cocktails, there are DeGroff’s own concoctions, plus “new classics” from other important mixologists, such as Audrey Saunders and Dick Bradsell. DeGroff offers specific brand recommendations for each cocktail, though he encourages experimentation when ingredients are hard to source. One common ingredient is his own Dale DeGroff Pimento Aromatic Bitters. There is also concise information on cocktail components, including how spirits are made, as well as service advice and a brief history of cocktails in America, including a beverage revival in the 1980s and 1990s.