This week I’m joined by none other than David Wondrich – cocktail historian, author, and one of the most influential voices in the modern drinks world. If you’ve ever picked up Imbibe!, mixed a punch bowl from his recipes, or thumbed through the monumental Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails, you’ll know why this conversation was such a treat.
We dive into David’s journey from punk-era bass player, to English professor, to Esquire’s drinks guy, and ultimately to becoming one of the leading authorities on cocktail history. He shares stories of working alongside legends like Gary Regan, Dale DeGroff, and Sasha Petraske, and reflects on how those relationships shaped both his career and the wider cocktail revival.
David takes us behind the scenes of Imbibe!, the groundbreaking book that helped ignite the craft cocktail renaissance and explains how new technology and dogged research made it possible to reconstruct Jerry Thomas’s world. We also talk about the epic scale of The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails: curating 1,200 entries with 165 contributors, and the challenges of making a truly global reference work.
Along the way, David opens up about the art of hospitality, why history and storytelling matter just as much as specs and technique, and his excitement for his upcoming comic book history of the cocktail, due for release this September.
This one’s packed with wisdom, humour, and more than a few great bar stories.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
- How David fell into drinks writing via Esquire magazine and ended up travelling the world covering bars and spirits.
- The origins of Imbibe! and why Jerry Thomas deserved a serious biography.
- The research process that unearthed forgotten ingredients, measurements, and recipes.
- The scale and ambition behind The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails.
- Why understanding the history and cultural context of drinks matters for bartenders today.
- The enduring importance of hospitality in an era of batched cocktails and avant-garde menus.
- A sneak peek at David’s next book a graphic novel-style history of cocktails.
Connect with David Wondrich
- Twitter: @DavidWondrich
- Books: Imbibe! | Punch | The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails
Connect with The Cocktail Academy
🎧 For bonus content and the full Lock-In session with David, head to thecocktailacademy.com.
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