the american cocktail, straight up: documenting punch, bath-tub gin, and the “age of...

The American Cocktail, Straight Up: Documenting Punch, Bath-tub Gin, and the “Age of Entertaining”

Kira A. DietzIn-Service Day 2014

(As opposed to the defining cocktail, which is a whole other discussion…)

Defining the “Cocktail”

• A docked horse tail• Any horse of racing stamp and qualities• A person assuming the position of a

gentlemen, but deficient in thorough gentlemanly breeding

• A type of beetle• A preparation of food usually served at the

beginning of a meal• A mixture of chemical substances, especially

one which is dangerous• The tail feather of a rooster• Oh, and it’s a type of drink…

Defining the “Cocktail”

“Will you be so obliging as to inform me what is meant by this species of refreshment [cock-tail]?...I have heard of a jorum, of phlegm-cutter and fog driver, of whetting the whistle, and moistening the clay, of a fillip, a spur in the head, quenching a spark in the throat, of flip &c. but never in my life, though I have lived a good many years, did I hear of cock-tail before. Is it peculiar to a part of this country? Is the name expressive of the effect which the drink has on a particular part of the body? Or does it signify that the democrats who take the potion are turned topsyturvey, and have their heads where their tails should be? I should think the latter to be the real solution…”

The Balance and Columbian Repository, Hudson, NY, 1806

“[As I make it a point, never to publish any thing (under my editorial head) but what I can explain, I shall not hesitate to gratify the curiosity of my inquisitive correspondent: Cock-tail, then, is a stimulating liquor, composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters—it is vulgarly called a bittered sling, and is supposed to be an excellent electioneering potion, inasmuch as it renders the heart stout and bold, at the same time that it fuddles the head. It is said also, to be of great use to a democratic candidate: because, a person having swallowed a glass of it, is ready to swallow any thing else.

Edit. Bal.]

What’s in a Name?

• “Punch”: liquor, sugar, water, lemon, and spices

• “Cocktail” (1806): a stimulating liquor, composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters

• “Mixed Drinks” (2002): one or more spirits, one or more mixers (i.e. juice or soda). Additional ingredients include sugar, honey, cream, herbs, spices, or fruits/veggies.

It All Began With…Punch?

• Years active: mid 17th century onward (in Western culture)

• Base spirit(s): alcohol (varied by region and availability)

• Additional ingredients: sugar, water, lemon, spices, tea

• New arrivals: fermented spirits from Southeast Asia, spices

Feuerzangenbowle

“On the other side of the ledger stood the fact that fortitude was useless against it (liquor). Even the mightiest potsman, a paladin who could match tankards with a whole alehouse of swag-bellies Falstaffs and outquaff the parcel of them, would see his length measured upon the floor by less liquid than it would take to fill his hat.” ― David Wondrich, Punch: The Delights (and Dangers) of the Flowing Bowl

The Rise of the Cocktail in America

• Years active: 1806-1918• Base spirit(s): Gin, brandy, whisk(e)y,

absinthe, vermouth. Later: cordials, fruit brandies/fruit liquors

• Additional ingredients: gum syrup, fruit syrups, bitters, water

• New arrivals: Pretty much everything was new in this era! Other “bases” that became popular include applejack, champagne, maraschino, and curacao

A Cocktail By Any Other Name

• Early cocktails developed in categories. Usually, there was a basic recipe and you simply swapped out the base spirit:

Fixes Rickeys Juleps/SmashesSours Cobblers CocktailsDaisies Nogs/Egg Drinks CrustasFizzes ToddiesCoolers Slings

In February 2013, Special Collections was lucky enough to acquire a first edition of How to Mix Drinks, or The Bon-Vivant’s Companion… by “Professor” Jerry Thomas. Printed in 1862, this was the first ever guide designed for bartenders.

“I have seen purer liquors, better seagars, finer tobacco, truer guns and pistols, larger dirks and bowie knives, and prettier courtezans here, than in any other place I have ever visited; and it is my unbiased opinion that California can and does furnish the best bad things that are obtainable in America.” -”Professor” Jerry Thomas

How to Mix Drinks, or The Bon-Vivant’s Companion…, 1862

The infamous “Blue Blazer”

Table Top Tolu Rock & Rye Advertisement, c. 1880-1881

Items like this would have been on display in pharmacies and apothecary shops. Of course, the main ingredient was often alcohol, which allowed distributors to get around the taxes charged on liquor. During Prohibition, patent medicines were still legal and as a result, many people would consume a bottle (or more!) a day.

The “Bitter” Truth

• Bitters emerged from patent medicines• In the late 19th century, bitters were often

market as medicinal to avoid the tax on alcohol and to escape the attention of temperance groups

• They remained legal during Prohibition and some people would consume a bottle (or more) a day

• Today, bitters come in as many varieties as you can up. Bars (and individuals!) make them with a range of flavors and profiles

Hegenbarth's Bowlen, Punsch-, und Kaffee-Haus-Getränkebuch : eine Sammlung zeitgemässer Vorschriften zur Herstellung von kalten, warmen und sonstigen Mischgetränken : Mit besonderer Berücksichtigung der in- und ausländischen Kaffeehaus-Getränke der "american drinks", sowie Äpfel und sonstiger Frucht Bowlen und Punsche, 1903

“I drink Champagne when I win, to celebrate.And I drink Champagne when I lose, to console myself.”-Napoleon Bonaparte

Drinks as They are Mixed: A Manual of Quick Reference: Containing Upwards of 300 Recipes for Mixing and Serving Drinks…: Including Toasts and Sentiments for All Occasions, c.1904

Louis’ Mixed Drinks, with Hints for the Care & Serving of Wine, Louis Muckensturm, 1906

“Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whisky is barely enough.”

– Mark Twain

Louis’ Mixed Drinks, with Hints for the Care & Serving of Wine, Louis Muckensturm, 1906

Prohibition and Between the Wars

• Years active: 1919-1941• Base spirit(s): Bath-tub gin, bath-tub

whisk(e)y, moonshine, home “brews.” After 1933: Gin, whisk(e)y, wine-based aperitifs, rum, champagne

• Additional ingredients: fruit juices, sweeteners/syrups, bitters

• New arrivals: Rum

Lowenbach Brothers Price List, c.1910s (Ms2012-006)

Drink Mixer, Compliments of Nat M. Leff, boxing promoter, 1931

Forty Famous Cocktails: Being a Compendium of Reliable recipes Carefully Compiled for Use in this Arid Era, Engraved with Humble Apologies to That Master Engraver John Held, Jr., c.1930s

“Prohibition is better than no liquor at all. “

-Will Rogers

“When I sell liquor, it's bootlegging.When my patrons serve it on a silver tray on Lakeshore Drive, it's hospitality.”

-Al Capone

The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, Albert Stevens Crockett, 1934

The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, Albert Stevens Crockett, 1934

The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, Albert Stevens Crockett, 1934

More Fun at Cocktail Time: A Rollicking Book of Games and Tricks, Julien J. Proskauer, c.1935

So Red the Nose; or, Breath in the Afternoon, Sterling North and Carl Kroch, c.1935

“The light music of whisky falling into glasses made an agreeable interlude.” ― James Joyce, Dubliners

“Remember gentlemen, it's not just France we are fighting for, it's Champagne!"

-Winston Churchill

The Latter Half of the 20th Century

• Years active: 1945-1999• Base spirit(s): Vodka, rum, gin,

whisk(e)y, cordials, tequila• Additional ingredients: flavored

sweeteners, fruits and herbs, fruit juices, soda, milk/cream

• New arrivals: Tiki drinks, popularization of the martini, Jell-O shots

Zodiac Cocktails: Cocktails for All Birthdays, Stanley S. MacNeil, 1940

The “Age of Entertaining”

• After WWII and through the 1970s, cocktail books were no longer simply bartending manuals

• Publications began to include food recipes, party games/themes, and planning tips for the hostess

• At the same time, cookbooks began to include cocktails

The Club Cocktail Party Book, 1941

“Remember gentlemen, it's not just France we are fighting for, it's

Champagne!"-Winston Churchill

The Stork Club Bar Book, Lucious Beebe, 1946

Crosby Gaige’s Cocktail Guide and Ladies’ Companion, 1946

Le Barman Universel = The Universal Barman: 600 Recettes de Boissons de Bar, les Vins, les Eaux, P. Dagouret, 1948

All-in-Vue 84 Drinks for You: A Recipe Book with a Great Deal of Other Valuable Information from the Cocktail Ephemera Collection (Ms2013-027)

A Guide to Pink Elephants: 200 Most Requested Mixed Drinks on Alcohol Resistant Cards, c.1952

The Calvert Party Encyclopedia, 1960 from the Cocktail Ephemera Collection (Ms2013-027)

From New York and Restaurants at the World’s Fair: 46 Great Drinks, 1961, from the Cocktail Ephemera Collection (Ms2013-027)

Fleischmann’s Mixer’s Manual, c.1960s(?) from the Cocktail Ephemera Collection (Ms2013-027)

Bacardi Recipe Book, 1971 from the Cocktail Ephemera Collection (Ms2013-027)

The 21st Century Cocktail

• Years active: 2000-• Base spirit(s): You name it, you can

concoct with it. • Additional ingredients: See base

spirits. This is an age of creativity.• New arrivals: Craft

ingredients/cocktails, molecular gastronomic approaches, infused spirits

The Kentucky Bourbon Cocktail Book, Joy Perrine and Susan Reigler, 2009

Carbonated Mojito Spheres (recipe adapted from Jose Andres) from Modernist Cuisine, 2012

Why Cocktail History?

• Some places collect cocktail books, but there aren’t many concentrated collections!

• Cocktails and cocktail culture are an interesting part of food history in America!

• Food history is something we do!• Cocktails are fun!

“First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you.”

-F. Scott Fitzgerland

History of the American Cocktail Collection

• Over 80 books– 1862-2013– Materials in four languages (English,

German, Spanish, and French) – Books published in at least 5 countries

• 5 manuscript collections– Pamphlets– Postcards– Advertisements and flyers– Ephemera– Forms and business documents

“The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy also mentions alcohol. It says that the best drink in existence is the Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster, the effect of which is like having your brains smashed out with a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick.” 

― Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

What’s in the Glass?(Collection Contents)

• Recipes and the evolution of cocktails• Bar manuals for the professional and

home bartender• Profiles of people and bars• Social history• Party planning, party games, and

entertaining• Spirits and drink history• Science of distillation• Temperance/Prohibition