The 10 Best Bartender Books
Editor's Notes
October 29, 2019:
We included plenty of practical options for those looking to set up and expand their bar beyond a few bottles. Elements of Cocktail Technique and Meehan's Bartender Manual are very instructional so that a beginner can follow it. You won't find a simpler, more straight-forward book than 3-Ingredient Cocktails, as it skips all the fancy infusions and extras.
But we also included some options that will delight even the most advanced mixologists. The Aviary Cocktail Book is a beautiful, recent addition to the cocktail book canon. It's equally a work of art as it is a book of recipes.
We replaced the Ultimate Bar Book with Cocktail Codex. While the Ultimate Bar Book boasted an impressive 1,000 recipes, there was too much crammed into such a small book and a lot of unnecessary repetition. The Cocktail Codex teaches you modern variations, plus how to improvise your own drinks off of the classics, so you'll have an endless supply of new things to try.