Recommended Cocktail Books from the Professionals:
What books do bartenders read to develop their professional skills? We asked a collection of bartenders that have brought phenomenal drinks to our festivals for their favourite reads.
Lorenzo Gavelli, Disrepute, Top 50 Cocktail Bars UK
Liquid Intelligence by Dave Arnold, though I wouldn’t necessarily call it a ‘cocktail book’ in the traditional sense – finding specific cocktails in the index requires navigating through a list of acids and enzymes.
What I do find very desirable is that cocktail recipes serve the very specific purpose of illustrating the techniques discussed in the book, which are broken down in a methodical way – sometimes in ‘excruciating detail’ as the author points out.
From an educational perspective, I find it infinitely more useful for bartenders (and cocktail enthusiasts alike) when recipes are presented in the context of teaching you why they work and how to apply those principles for future purposes rather than laid out as an absolute truth, when they really are largely just a matter of interpretation.
Admittedly the book is now well over a decade old and in need of an update but as far as I am aware this is indeed supposed to come out in the near future so I would recommend keeping your eyes peeled for it!
Bryn Lovell (formerly Bar Manager) of Equal Parts, Timeout Bar of the Year 2025
I have chosen The Bar Chef cocktail book by Frankie Solaris. I pulled this one out because it resonates directly to my own experience of working across both kitchens and bars. Having moved between those two worlds, I’ve always seen how closely they’re connected, yet often treated as completely separate disciplines. This book bridges that gap beautifully.
What stood out to me most was the approach and methodology, but seeing them applied so thoughtfully behind the bar reinforced how culinary principles can elevate drinks to another level.
Time is another element that really stood out for me. The book emphasises patience: allowing ingredients to develop, respecting seasonality, and understanding that great flavour can’t be rushed. Working in kitchens teaches you to respect produce at its peak, and behind the bar, that same awareness of seasonality can transform a cocktail from good to exceptional. Solarik’s philosophy highlights how timing, whether in preparation, aging, infusion, or sourcing is just as important as technique.
Ultimately, I found the book inspiring because it validates a way of thinking I’ve developed through experience: that bars and kitchens are not separate entities, but extensions of the same craft.
Jack Sotti, Bar Ambassador, Archive & Myth
New Bar of the Year – Bar Magazine Awards
The first book that comes to me is ‘The Joy of Mixology’ by Gary Regan. Rest in peace, he died a couple of years ago. But that book was very formative for me as a young bartender and really inspiring. The clues in the name for why this book resonated with me. The way he writes about bartending and the craft and the art of it is incredibly romantic and really makes you want to do the job as a career. The book, which was first published 23 years ago now also provided a categorisation of cocktails which gave me a way to understand classics which I think is great.
Marcello Cauda, Bars Manager at The Berkeley and The Emory Hotel
One of my favourite cocktail books is Cocktail Balance 2.0. For me, it feels like the new Liquid Intelligence.
What I really like about it is how detailed it is when it comes to explaining how drinks are built. It’s not just a list of recipes the book goes into the reasoning behind the balance of a cocktail, the preparation, and why certain techniques or ingredients work together.
It reminds me of Liquid Intelligence because it approaches cocktails in a very thoughtful and technical way, but it feels more updated with modern bar techniques and preparation methods.
If you enjoy understanding the structure of a drink and not just following recipes, it’s a really great book to have behind the bar.
Ozzy Ostap Giagkniouk, Drink Development Manager, Nightcap Group
