What to Drink

"The hostess of to-day will be called upon to serve drinks in her home more than formerly, I imagine, and it were well to go back to the habits and customs of our grandmothers and be prepared to serve a refreshing drink in an attractive manner at a moment's notice." - Bertha E. L. Stockbridge, 1920 When the 18th Amendment went into effect in the United States, ushering in thirteen long years of alcohol prohibition, it threw thousands of bartenders out of work and created a dilemma for hostesses across the country: What to serve guests at events. A wedding without a champagne toast? Unthinkable! A Christmas celebration without the rum punch? Tragic! A summertime picnic without a bottle of cold beer-that's just not right. Yet Bertha E. L. Stockbridge rose to the new challenge, and in 1920 released a book of non-alcoholic drinks and cocktails suitable for serving at a variety of events. Included are cobblers, fizzes, sours, highballs, and juleps, as well as recipes for homemade syrups and fruit vinegars, all without a measure of alcohol. However, if one were to add a drop or two of Bathtub Gin to these already tasty drinks, they would only be that much more "authentic" to the period. Wouldn't you agree? What to Drink is part of the Classic Cocktail Guides and Retro Bartender Books series published by Kalevala Books.