Raise a Glass...

A little inspiration for cocktail hour.

Set out the good glasses.

Cocktail hour deserves a bit of ceremony, even when the guest list consists of a few friends gathered around the kitchen island. It need not involve a silver tray, an elaborate bar cart, or anyone who knows how to juggle a cocktail shaker. Sometimes the simplest invitation—come over for a drink—is all that is required.

We have recently fallen for a set of six stemless champagne glasses with jewel-colored bases. Each glass is a different color, which makes a table look wonderfully festive and puts an end to the perennial question of whose drink is whose. They're elegant without being terribly serious about themselves: exactly the sort of thing that earns a permanent place in the cupboard rather than waiting patiently for New Year's Eve.

Champagne and Prosecco are natural choices, but we would happily serve a French 75, a Bellini, or any sufficiently celebratory cocktail in them. They make even an impromptu gathering feel as though someone has given it a little thought.

Three cities, three very good reasons to stay in

Of course, good glasses are only half the pleasure. The other half is deciding what to pour—and perhaps where to imagine yourself while doing it. Our cocktail-book shelves offer a rather appealing itinerary through three cities, each with its own drinking traditions and particular sense of occasion.

Chicago Cocktails is the natural starting point for us. It explores the Windy City's bars and neighborhoods through more than 100 recipes, with insights from the bartenders behind some of its most interesting drinks. There is a pleasing mix of local knowledge and practical instruction here: the sort of book that might send you off to explore a new corner of Chicago, or persuade you to stay home and try your hand at something more ambitious than your usual pour.

Paris Cocktails is a different sort of invitation. Think old-fashioned hotel bars, aperitifs that stretch into evening, and that distinctly Parisian ability to make sitting with a drink feel like an event. Its recipes and stories wander from historic haunts to modern cocktail spots, and there is something thoroughly transporting about leafing through it, even if your actual view is of the kitchen sink rather than the Seine.

Then we arrive at London Cocktails, where the city's long affection for gin meets a lively contemporary bar scene. Alongside more than 100 recipes, there are bartenders to meet, techniques to learn, and enough London history to make the whole business feel a bit like armchair travel. Consider it a very agreeable way to spend an evening in Britain without searching for your passport.

What makes these books especially appealing is that they are more than manuals for measuring and mixing. They capture a little of the character of the places that inspired them. You can browse for the stories and photographs, make one recipe, and find yourself returning for another. Start in Chicago, spend the next evening in Paris, and finish the weekend in London. We cannot promise the jet lag will be convincing.

The art of a good gift

There is a reason we love gifts that encourage people to enjoy their own homes. A cocktail book makes a marvelous present for a host, a newlywed couple, or a friend who has just moved. Pair a favorite city with our colored champagne glasses, and you have the makings of many cheerful evenings to come. Equally nice, of course, is keeping the whole arrangement for yourself.

Set out the glasses. Choose a city. Invite someone interesting. The rest can take care of itself.

Cheers!

Discover the stemless champagne glasses and our Chicago, Paris, and London cocktail books at Clever Girl.