A Cocktail in Paris: 65 Recipes for Oh So Chic Cocktails & Bar Bites

A Cocktail in Paris transports you to the elegant world of the Parisian bar scene and shows you how to create the drinks that have inspired the creativity of numerous writers, thinkers, and artists.

Is there any better city to drink in than Paris? Whether you’re sipping a Mimosa over brunch on a terrace on the Boulevard Montparnasse, enjoying an Américano before dinner at Les Deux Magots, or indulging in a late-night cognac digestif at Harry’s Bar, the drinking holes of the City of Light have been working their magic for decades. A Cocktail in Paris features 50 recipes divided into chapters covering all-day cocktails; aperitifs; gin and vodka-based cocktails; rum, Cognac and whisky-based cocktails; and digestifs and late-night classics; along with 15 recipes for the most soignée small bites to serve alongside them. You’ll find Belle Epoque classics from the heyday of the Moulin Rouge, like the original Champagne Cocktail, alongside the drinks beloved by Ernest Hemingway during les années folles of the 1920s. During the Prohibition era in the US, many bartenders left New York to set up bars in Europe, resulting in the now-legendary cocktail creations of Harry McElhone at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris, such as the Bloody Mary and the Sidecar. Discover, too, the resurgence in popularity of cocktails in the modern-day bar scene of the Marais district. A Cocktail in Paris is also packed with tips on how to improve your cocktail-making prowess and fascinating stories from the days of decadence, helping you to capture the sophisticated spirit of golden-age Paris, that most inspiring city of cocktails.

Laura Gladwin trained at Leith’s School of Food and Wine and worked at one of London’s biggest party design companies, creating menus and devising cocktail lists for events. She now works as a writer and editor specializing in food and drink. She lives in London, UK.