It’s the time of the year when magazines prepare their Christmas supplements, so journalists are deluged with information about “gifting.” There is something uniquely irritating about the word gifting, and in fact gerunds in general: breakfasting, tasting ... softly furnishing. That last one was the slogan of a furniture shop in Leeds. Which is why my heart sank when I read the title of Richard Godwin’s new book, The Spirits: a Guide to Modern Cocktailing. But wait! On closer inspection it appears that the word “cocktailing” isn’t some dubious marketing invention. It was coined by F Scott Fitzgerald, and I’m not going to argue with the author of the Great Gatsby – especially as, were he alive, he’d probably be drunk. Fitzgerald liked to conjugate the word cocktail: I cocktailed, you had a bit too much to drink, he was sick in Zelda’s handbag (I made up the last two.)
Godwin’s is full of very interesting stories about the history of cocktails. The book is witty but also feels thoroughly researched. I get the impression that each recipe was arrived at by experimentation and tasting rather than just received opinion. It must have been hell to research. Godwin is sceptical about much writing on cocktails because many top barmen are in the pay of Big Drink.
Despite Godwin’s attempts to demystify the process, there are times when cocktail-making is anything but straightforward. Many ingredients that you need to progress to the advanced level aren’t easily obtainable. Apparently, the mainstream brands of grenadine are hideous, so he recommends making your own out of pomegranate juice. It’s a similar story with lime cordial: Godwin finds Roses too sweet so, again, makes his own. It all seems like such a lot of work.
Then there are drinks that have changed since the heyday of cocktailing in the 1920s. In order to make a true Brooklyn, you need the old Amer Picon, a French bitter orange liqueur, at 38% alcohol rather than the puny 18% modern version.
The greatest lost ingredient, however, is Kina Lillet. This is, or rather was, a fortified flavoured wine and an essential ingredient in the vesper martini. It was reformulated in 1986 as Kina Blanc and lost its famous bitter edge. Bottles of original Kina Lillet became much sought-after items by cocktail aficionados. Now though, there is Cocchi Americano. This recently launched Italian aromatised wine is apparently a dead ringer for Kina Lillet, being both sweet and bitter.
Not having tried the original, I can’t comment, but it made a damn good vesper to Godwin’s exact specifications: 45ml gin, 15ml vodka, 7.5ml Cocchi and lemon zest. Cocchi is now on my Christmas “gifting” list and The Spirits should be on yours.
• Henry Jeffreys’ first book, Empire of Booze, will be published by Unbound in 2016. @henrygjeffreys
