The former bartender at the Ritz Paris's legendary Bar Hemingway reveals the intoxicating secrets for concocting the world's greatest cocktails--with more than fifty drink recipes and full-color illustrations throughout. Evoking the delirious, richly communal spirit of A Moveable Feast, Colin Peter Field's The Cocktails of the Ritz Paris transports readers back to the heady days when Ernest Hemingway and his fellow Lost Generation expatriates frequented the Ritz Paris, site of perhaps the most well-known bar in the world. The Bar Hemingway began as the Petit Bar in 1921 and was frequented by the likes of Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, and Noel Coward. With the same richness of the Ritz's cosmopolitan tradition, Field reveals the true histories behind such classics as the Sidecar, the Dry Martini, the Bloody Mary, the Dirty Earl Grey Martini, and the Corpse Reviver No. 2--and he provides step-by-step recipes for more than fifty drinks, from renowned innovations like the Ritzini and the Clockwork Orange to timeless favorites like the Gin Fizz, the Pina Colada, and the Tom Collins. Accompanying each recipe are fascinating comments and asides on the who, when, where, and why of the cocktail's genesis and evolution. Much more than a mere recipe reference, The Cocktails of the Ritz Paris leads discriminating tipplers and Francophiles alike on an eye-opening historical walk through the world and culture of the cocktail set. Exploring everything from proper garniture and the intricate psychology of drink-mixing to the all-important task of glass selection and which cocktails are particularly suitable for cigar accompaniment, Field's book is a delicious mix of sophistication and charm.