We’re reasonably regular home cocktail makers with a handful or two of books in our arsenal, ranging from the simple to the quirky to the complex. Leftover ginger beer led us to a Ginger Scruff next, using Vodka as the base and, rather surprisingly, adding Frangelico to it.

There’s a Capsule Cocktail Cabinet in the Introduction of 26 items (supplemented with other items in other Introduction sections) with “all the essential mixers, spirits, bitters and syrups you’ll ever need to take your creativity to the next level” – you should note that this doesn’t by any stretch of the imagination cover all the cocktails in the book (lemon vodka is used in one recipe but not mentioned elsewhere, not even in the Index, the same with Poire Williams). Olly’s chatty style and evocative introductions do lead you to think of trying the Hurricane (which explains cleverly what two differently aged rums will bring to the drink), or his own invention, the Disco Dancing Mermaid, an azure party-starter based on Blue Curaçao. Illustrated with colour photography and useful flavour wheels throughout, and with clear instructions for the flawless cocktail, Home Cocktail Bible is an indispensable addition to your home bar.But it feels like a book that could have been a lot more informative, accessible, useable and enjoyable without a huge amount of extra thought and effort, and there’s a persistent sense that it does Olly’s abilities and recipes something of a disservice. An A-Z of two hundred classic and contemporary cocktail recipes, with anecdotes for the curious and tips and techniques for the adventurous. If you're looking for a cocktail book that has all the classics and essential/standard drinks every bartender should know its this. Presented in a bottle green faux-leather jacket with gold foil lettering and heat-burnished illustration.

Read more about the condition Very Good: A book that has been read and does not look new, but is in excellent condition. Due to the distressing and unfathomable lack of champagne in the house we used the French Harvest variation, topping up with cider instead.We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others.