OP: 100 Cocktails How to Mix Them

It is curious that this WWII era book, published in London, saw enough success to be reprinted multiple times when the identity of the author—credited only as “Bernard”—remains a mystery. In fact, to the best of our knowledge, the books in their various issues were never dated, and we can only judge when they were printed from the gradually increasing price on the jackets.

We can at least say that our copy dates to the 1940s after paper rationing began in Britain, as the official logo and statement that the book “is produced in complete conformity with the authorized economy standards” for wartime printing facing the title page. The price on the jacket is two shillings (the lowest we have seen is 1s 6p), so we know it is an early printing, though not the first. Copies from this era are scarce.

As indicated by the title, 100 cocktail recipes can be found within, measurements in gills. Thoughtful notes on the quality of the drinks (strength, accessibility) and recipe variations are included with many. 

It is a compilation made by a person who takes drink and its craft seriously: “Whether the reader agrees with me or not hardly matters. What does matter is that he should appreciate that the ingredients of a cocktail have been thought out and selected by a master-mind who has blended them together to obtain a definite flavor…to alter them…means an inferior result.”

Our copy is in Very Good shape with some age staining appearing on the endpapers. The jacket is chipped along the edges and missing about a centimeter of paper at the head of the spine. A closed tear runs diagonally under the title, but no part of the text or illustration is dramatically altered. We have left with it a small, staple bound Bacardi promotional pamphlet we had found laid in.