This has to be one of the most interesting cocktail books that I have seen in awhile. A man that the New York Times has dubbed the “Sorcerer of Shaken and Stirred”, Alex Ott brings us the ying and yang of cocktails. To balance the affect of alcohol, Mr. Ott has paired with it with a variety of tinctures, juices and spices. I guess this isn’t surprising given Mr. Ott’s background as a chemist, alchemist, master mixologist, bartender to the stars and formulator of Mercy, the “hangover prevention beverage”.
Dr. Cocktail is a lovely little hardbound book peppered with interesting recipes, intriguing ingredients and luscious photos of cocktails and their ingredients. If that weren’t enough, the book has catchy chapter titles and cocktail names, like “Drinking the Fountain of Youth”, “Liquid Bedtime Stories & Relaxing Elixirs”, “Beets Me” and a “Fenugreek Wedding”. The book highlights out of the ordinary ingredients, like mango nectar, lemongrass and fenugeek. It also utilizes everyday ingredients, like beets, cucumbers and yogart, that you wouldn’t expect to see in a cocktail. Don’t fear these ingredients, embrace them. They are delicious and make yummy drinks.
This book is a must have for the cocktail enthusiast that has everything or the cocktail geek that likes to experiment. It would also make a great gift for the Mocktail lover, as a number of the drinks are good sans alcohol.
