An Around-the-Clock Guide from Morning Bracers to After-Dinner Nightcaps 

Jimmy Buffet croons, “It’s only half past twelve, but I don’t care... it’s five o’clock somewhere.” It’s a one-finger-salute to the rules and norms regarding who may drink what, where and when.

Throughout history, the rules of drinking have depended on mood, setting, context, and diurnal rhythms of the day. From an anti-fogmatic in the morning to bedtime dream enhancers, pre-prandial sharpeners to after-lunch stomach-settlers, and an afternoon-filling bridging drink or two, the ebb and flow of daily life has most often determined the appropriateness of a libation.

A Day in the Life of a Cocktail is more than a collection of recipes, differentiating one temporal context from another. It’s a fascinating, new-school bible for the civilized imbiber, one that takes an intelligent dive into history, personalities, and craft. Slightly irreverent and chronicled with tongue lodged securely in cheek, this book sets out to fill that need with an entertaining “tippler’s timetable,” dividing the day into five intervals around the clock and providing each with a dozen thoughtfully-selected cocktail accompaniments.

Harry’s New York Bar is an essential rendezvous for Americans who visit Paris. The current drinkmaker-in-charge, Laurent Giraud, has graciously added a copy of A Day in the Life of a Cocktail to the glass case at the end of the mahogany bar.