Make Hundreds of Cocktails with Just Twelve Bottles

It’s a system, a tool kit, a recipe book. Beginning with one irresistible idea--a complete home bar of just 12 key bottles--here’s how to make more than 200 classic and unique mixed drinks, including sours, slings, toddies, and highballs, plus the perfect Martini, the perfect Manhattan, and the perfect Mint Julep.

It’s a surprising guide--tequila didn’t make the cut, and neither did bourbon, but genever did. And it’s a literate guide--describing with great liveliness everything from the importance of vermouth and bitters (the “salt and pepper” of mixology) to the story of a punch bowl so big it was stirred by a boy in a rowboat.

“How many cocktails could you make using just 12 bottles without sacrificing flavor, technique, or creativity? The answer: enough to give your local molecular mixologist a run for his money.”
– Publishers Weekly

“Make enough cocktails to last you a lifetime. Limited to only seven spirits, one liqueur, two vermouths and two styles of bitters, you will indeed have a collection that in many ways will exceed most typical bars around the country.”
– Good Spirits News

About the Authors:

David Solmonson and Lesley Jacobs Solmonson are the husband-and-wife publishers of the popular blog 12bottlebar.com. Mr. Solmonson has written for both film and television, while Ms. Solmonson, spirits and wine writer for L.A. Weekly, is also the author of Gin: A Global History and the forthcoming Liqueur: A Global History. The Solmonsons live in Los Angeles.