Spirits of Latin America
A Celebration of Culture & Cocktails, with 100 Recipes from Leyenda & Beyond
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- £5.99
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- £5.99
Publisher Description
A James Beard Award-nominated bartender explores the history and culture of Latin American spirits in this stunningly photographed travelogue—with 100+ irresistible cocktails featuring tequila, rum, pisco, and more.
TALES OF THE COCKTAIL SPIRITED AWARD® WINNER • IACP AWARD WINNER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY POPMATTERS
“Ivy’s unique combination of taste, talent, and tenacity make her the ideal ‘spirit’ guide.”—Steven Soderbergh, filmmaker, professional drinker, and owner of Singani 63
Through its in-depth look at drinking culture throughout Latin America, this gorgeous book offers a rich cultural and historical context for understanding Latin spirits. Ivy Mix has dedicated years to traveling south, getting to know Latin culture, in part through what the locals drink. What she details in this book is the discovery that Latin spirits echo the Latin palate, which echoes Latin life, emphasizing spiciness, vivaciousness, strength, and variation. After digging into tequila and Mexico's other traditional spirits, Ivy Mix follows the sugar trail through the Caribbean and beyond, winding up in Chile, Peru, and Bolivia, where grape-based spirits like pisco and singani have been made for generations.
With more than 100 recipes that have garnered acclaim at her Brooklyn bar, Leyenda, including fun spins on traditional cocktails such as the Pisco Sour, Margarita, and Mojito, plus drinks inspired by Ivy's travels, like the Tia Mia (which combines mezcal, rum, and orange curacao, with a splash of lime and almond orgeat) or the Sonambula (which features jalapeño-infused tequila, lemon juice, chamomile syrup, and a dash of Peychaud's bitters), along with mouthwatering photos and gorgeous travel images, this is the ultimate book on Latin American spirits.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Mix, owner of Brooklyn's Leyenda bar, shares her in-depth knowledge of Latin American liquors in this invigorating debut. The book is organized into three sections, each based on a spirit's source of sugar. The first chapter is devoted to agave, the vital ingredient of tequila and mezcal. Mix presents an extensive look at the cultural history of the plant as it relates to Mexico, and delves into the many facets of producing agave-based spirits. In addition to a traditional margarita recipe there is a Mai Tai variation, named Mia Tia, made with mezcal, as well as the complicated but fun Perennial Millennial with rhubarb syrup and cardamom tincture. The second section is dedicated to sugarcane and its path from Africa to the Caribbean. Rum cocktails share space with cacha a, "the fourth most-consumed distilled beverage in the world." The concluding chapter focuses on the humble grape as it is put to use in Peruvian pisco and the Bolivian liquor called singani, which is shaken with chile liqueur, black currant jam, lemon juice, and a bit of maple syrup. Mix's blend of bright flavors and unique insight results in a stirring first book.
