Cocktail Recipes from the pre-prohibition era to the present day

The Ideal Bartender was written in 1917 by Tom Bullock. The book is full of vintage cocktail recipes from the pre-prohibition era. We used these cocktail recipes as the base for TheIdealBartender.com and we've been adding to the list ever since. Thirsty? Me too!

Where's The Vodka?

You'll notice that the big four base ingredients in the vintage cocktails are brandy, gin, rum, and whiskey. Vodka is conspicuous by it's absence. Evidently Vodka was rarely consumed outside of Europe until the 1950's and didn't start to gain popularity in the USA until the 1970's. Also in short supply is Tequila. Qué lástima!

Raw Egg Alert in Vintage Cocktail Recipes!

So, how do the vintage cocktail recipes stand up in the 21st century? Most of the ingredients are available at your local liquor store and supermarket so let's find out! Several recipes call for the addition of raw egg. Unless the alcohol in the other ingredients is guaranteed to kill any bacteria the raw egg components are probably not a good idea. What would be a suitable substitute? Your comments and suggestions are always welcome.

Have fun and, as always, drink responsibly!