Martin’s Index of Cocktails

This app is well worth its price. That it will continue to expand with new recipes, sources, ingredients, and historical notes makes it a bargain. Detailed, accurate recipes with proper source attribution. Multiple ways to explore drinks not only related by specific indexed information (e.g., source or ingredients) but related through curatorial observation (e.g., the Merry Widow Cocktail from 1909 is basically the same as the Diplomate Cocktail from 1922) or the Marguerite’s role as a proto-Martini. Excellent home inventory management tied clearly to “drinks you can make” with your current ingredients, or the addition of 1 or 2 more. Lists of relevant brands for ingredients, quite useful in mapping a modern ingredient to its differently named ancestor (e.g., “pimento dram” available as St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram). Links from ingredients back to all the recipes which use them; so handy for those moment like “Well, I bought this creme de violette for the Aviation, now what else can we make with it?” That’s not a complete list of features by any stretch, but ones which have especially delighted me so far. I will also note that the creator of the app is very responsive to issue reports and feedback. Updates are one easy click when launching the app and load fast. When I first bought it I saw two content updates come in at least before the app had been out two weeks. In short, this is a magical font of drink knowledge which will keep flowing for your happiness! Do also note the great functionality for using the inventory to find drinks you can make with the ingredients you have on hand.

This is not merely a list of every drink under the sun like most apps. Nor is it for the person more interested in the quantity one can drink, than the drink itself. For the person interested in mixology, the the sources in which the recipes were found, and comprehensive information on the ingredients, what may be reasonably substituted, and currently available - and so much more! This is a work actively in progress and it’s author promises to do more. Martin responds promptly and politely to queries, seeming genuinely interested in users comments and is very knowledgeable of the topic. This book calls to mind a toast from Autrims (1902) called “Old Fashioned Joys” - Old-fashioned songs, and old-fashioned weather; Old-fashioned books, and old-fashioned leather; old fashioned girls, and mothers and boys; a toast, each and all, to old-fashioned joys. Cheers!!

If you're interested in understanding the history of cocktails, especially the history of particular cocktails, this app is phenomenally interesting. It has a really neat feature of browsing through related variations of the same recipe across several years. The design of this suite of apps is perfectly suited to the at-home cocktail enthusiast. Input your ingredients once, sync to all other apps (easily authenticating via 1Password support), flag recipes, and drink lovely cocktails. I'm a particular fan of flagging recipes I want to try because the list of flagged recipes shows you results from all installed apps in the suite. Very easy to find a good one to try (likewise with favorites).