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The first Gilded Age was a time of rampant corruption, the big business crooks of Tammany Hall, and lavish displays of wealth rivaled by abject poverty. It was also the period when America\u2019s elite mastered the art of crafting the perfect cocktail. Though there were a few missteps along the way\u2014including the Black Velvet, which included equal parts champagne and, disturbingly, porter\u2014the era birthed the classic cocktails that we drink to this day. But what parties, what people, were around for the debut of the Manhattan? Or the martini, the daiquiri, the pisco sour? Cecelia Tichi, professor of American literature and culture at Vanderbilt University, tells all in her new book, The Gilded Age of Cocktails.

Go beyond the episode:

• Cecelia Tichi\u2019s The Gilded Age of Cocktails
• Tichi mentioned a few other keepers of bartending history: David Wondrich, who wrote Imbibe!; and our own Wayne Curtis, who wrote And a Bottle of Rum and Neutral Ground, a long-running column on our website about all things New Orleans (including alcohol)
• For a reminder on how to partake with class, Michael Fontaine graced the podcast last year to talk about his book How to Drink
• Here\u2019s a great article on how to rustle up vintage cocktail books, like Jerry Thomas\u2019s 1862 classic, The Bar-Tender\u2019s Guide
• A few more how-to manuals to grace your bar: Mittie Helmich\u2019s The Ultimate Bar Book, Gary Regan\u2019s The Joy of Mixology, Amy Stewart\u2019s The Drunken Botanist, David Embury\u2019s The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (which pairs well with Wayne Curtis\u2019s great essay on reconciling Embury\u2019s legacy with his bigotry)

Tune in every week to catch interviews with the liveliest voices from literature, the arts, sciences, history, and public affairs; reports on cutting-edge works in progress; long-form narratives; and compelling excerpts from new books. Hosted by Stephanie Bastek.

Have suggestions for projects you\u2019d like us to catch up on, or writers you want to hear from? Send us a note: podcast [at] theamericanscholar [dot] org. And rate us on iTunes! Our theme music was composed by Nathan Prillaman.

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