Post #275320 by TikiJosh on Thu, Dec 28, 2006 3:26 PM

I would have to recommend the Trader Vic's bartender's guide. It sort of goes without saying, but if you're compiling a list, this is a must-have.
I've got the tiki drinks book by Jennifer Thompson. It's okay, and the drinks are alright.
Around the World in 80 drinks by Adam Rocke, it's a SHAG book, and has a nice recipe for a drink called an Alpine Storm-- pineapple juice, brandy, vermouth and creme de menthe. It's a good drink, and one of my favorite things for winter.
The Tiki Drink Deck is good fun. The drinks are about the same quality as the ones in the Around the World book. You won't find the original Trader Vic's Mai Tai recipe, but you'll find some other interesting things to try. I imagine this one would be most fun for the "draw a card out of the deck and drink whatever it is" opportunity during a party. That would require a pretty well stocked bar, though, so be forewarned.
I've also got the Batender's Black Book from Beverages and More. I forget who wrote it, but you can find the book on the BevMo website. It's got a lot of recipes which is nice, not strictly tiki. It does have a recipe for a Mai Tai that is pretty close to the original, but not quite there. The Singapore Sling recipe is nothing like the one the Beachbum has, so I haven't been brave enough to try it. There's a lot of other recipes in there, if you're interested in making those kinds of things. But it's probably nothing you wouldn't be able to find on the internet cocktail database. Washington apples, that type of thing.
I've only tried several of the drinks from these different sources, and probably double that number from the Beachbum Berry books. It goes without saying that the Beachbm Berry stuff is the best. The others are good, and I've been pretty pleased with the various recipes. I'd skip the others to have a book by the Bum, but if you're looking for more recipes, then these other books might be a good start.