It's lively seas ahead, ye scurvy bilge-rats! But before extolling the plentiful pleasures of Jeff Berry's new instant-classic, let me drop the piratey parlance and note that his previous exploration on a similar theme - 'Sippin' Safari' - is one of the handful of non-fiction books I have honest-to-God re-read several times (and I don't even have a home BAR!), both for the sheer enjoyment of the writing as well as the colorful collection of people whose lives Berry illuminates with wit and wry perception.
But the other potent component in Jeff's tomes is his remarkable knowledge of history -- both of drinks and the countries and people who engendered them.
And if an award were given for the keenest, most perceptive, and best educated palate on the planet with regard to spirits and the various cocktails they haunt, the honor would go, hands down, to The Beachbum himself. And though he could easily found a university specializing in the study of potable potions and teach all the courses himself, this is all academic, if you'll pardon the pun, in the face of just how much FUN Jeff's books invariably are. And his newest is certainly no exception. In fact, he may well have outdone himself.
But though 'Potions Of The Caribbean' is a formidable achievement in alcoholic archeology, unearthing everything you could possibly want to know about the always fascinating, often violent history of rum and the countless elixirs it has inspired over a huge span of years, I can't help but feel this newest foray into the sweet/sour/strong/weak world of tropical cocktail concoctions is an unofficial sequel, of sorts, to 'Sippin' Safari', or certainly a deeper, wider extension of the groundwork previously laid out in that previous volume.
Both a more ambitious and, overall, intricate book than 'Safari', 'Potions' impressively explores the political, socio-economic and cultural history of the Caribbean as viewed through the distinctive bottom-of-a-bottle lens of Mr. Berry's unique expertise. So this is, ultimately, as much a rich history lesson as it is a rum-soaked adventure and cocktail recipe book - one part sour, two parts sweet, three parts strong and NO parts weak!
But, like its predecessor, 'Potions' is, for me at least, at its most enjoyably intoxicating when spinning colorful yarns about the remarkable people behind the brass rail and the libations they concoct and/or serve. And a particularly colorful biographical gem within this gold mine of tropical mystery, history and mixology is to be found in chapter 6 and concerns the memorable life and career of one "Joe The Bartender" which has to be read to be believed. (I'll say no more -- just buy the book!)
Also of note are the drink recipes in the earlier section of the book in which Berry recreates various historical potions all but lost to time and, in the process, creates for us a kind of tippler's time machine. Though I must admit that -- fascinating as these recreated recipes most assuredly are -- a few of these curiosities might require a tad more courage to sample than I myself happen to possess.
Finally, is it too much to hope for a TRILOGY from this potently potable writer who, though far from a criminal,
has spent a great deal of his life behind bars? Because, as richly extensive as it is, the book breezes by in a beautifully produced, glossily scintillating flash, as the vintage eye-candy illustrations and mouth-watering new drink-porn photos vie for attention with the plentiful and wittily written recipes which accompany them. Yet all of that is icing on a literary cake already rich with an un-put-downable chronicle of the Caribbean and its influences on creative inebriation which equals in wildness anything Captain Jack Sparrow had to contend with in his various piratical screen adventures.
So, Mateys, hoist yer anchors and ready your sea-legs (preferably hollow ones) for a rollicking voyage on Seven Seas worth of tropical cocktails and the compellin' lore behind 'em that ye won't soon be likely to forget! Yo Ho Ho and a Super-Tanker o' Rum!! Aarrrrh!!!
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Perfect book for a tiki fanatic - not for the faint of cocktail-mixing heart
I created a monster with this one. Bought it as a gift for a cocktail enthusiast, and he went full-out tiki crazy. This includes buying nearly every ingredient in the book, including ~20 bottles of rum. So buyer beware: this is not just a book. It's a lifestyle. Not for the casual tiki fan, as these drinks tend to be super involved , both in terms of labor, and sourcing hard to find ingredients. Fee Brothers Bar Cocktail Mixers Starter Set is a good start. If you choose to embark on this wonderful journey, I wish you G-dspeed! Cheers!!
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