Press Release
|The Connaught Bar unveils its first cocktail book, featuring 100 signature recipes and stories from renowned mixologist Agostino Perrone. Available globally from April 10, 2024, it invites home bartenders to recreate iconic drinks.
London, April 2024: The legendary Connaught Bar, located in the heart of The Connaught, Mayfair, and its distinguished team of master mixologists are celebrated the world over for their extraordinary dedication to hospitality and creative mixology. The team has also been awarded endless accolades, including two times World’s Best Bar. For the very first time the book, The Connaught Bar: Recipes and Iconic Creations, will take readers behind the scenes at the iconic hospitality temple, presenting 100 elegant signature cocktails that have become timeless classics, with stories and instructions on how to recreate the recipes a The Connaught Bar feel at home. Published by Phaidon, the book is available globally from Wednesday 10th April 2024.
At the creative heart of the bar, and co-author of the book, is virtuoso and Director of Mixology, Agostino Perrone, better known and loved as Ago. One of the most prominent figures in global mixology, Perrone has led the bar for over fifteen years, revolutionising the London bar scene with his unique approach to hospitality and mixology and earning numerous awards including World’s Best Bartender and Hotel Bar from Tales of the Cocktail, and this year’s Best International Bar Mentor.
Perrone commented, “The Connaught Bar book not only encapsulates 15 years of work but also a life experience. It’s a collection of emotions, stories, and connections with our guests. Cocktails have always been our own way to express creativity, discovery, and the ultimate sense of hospitality that we share here at The Connaught. This book celebrates a legacy that we continue to share with existing and future guests, inviting them to join our journey.”
Perrone co-created the book with Giorgio Bargiani (Assistant Director of Mixology, who received International Bartender of the Year award 2023 at Tales of the Cocktail), Maura Milia (former Connaught Bar Manager), and award-winning drinks historian and cocktail specialist Anistatia Miller. Each cocktail is influenced by the team’s travels around the globe – featuring ingredients such as corn-based chicha morada from Peru, amaro liqueur from Italy, and plum wine from Japan.
The book opens with The Connaught Martini, a signature cocktail which has been served since the bar opened its doors in 2008, followed by simple and timeless cocktails like the rich and fruity Ristretto Manhattan or the Champagne cocktail Fleurissimo, or artful creations such as the dry and aromatic Number 11, inspired by Jackson Pollock’s action painting. The book also includes 12 non-alcoholic cocktails, such as the refreshing Tea Rinfresco, The Silky Way and Ripple.
Giorgio Bargiani, Assistant Director of Mixology of The Connaught:
“Recipes become statements when they find their place in a book. And this book is an important statement for The Connaught Bar and our team. Through the lines of these 100 recipes there are the building and evolution of a mixology style that has progressed over the years always remaining true to the distinctive hospitality ethos of The Connaught.”
Alongside expert guidance for essential bar tools, glassware, and spirits, there are 120 additional recipes for homemade syrups, infused spirits, and garnishes that Perrone and his team use to make their signature celebrated drinks. Each cocktail recipe is introduced with a narrative from Perrone about the inspiration and ingredients, plus icons to indicate skill and alcohol levels.
The Connaught Bar distils the meticulous elegance behind one of the world’s finest bars into one exceptional book. With Perrone and his team as guides, readers will be able to elevate their cocktail making at home, for every occasion, into a fine art for a taste of The Connaught Bar experience. Designed by David Collins Studio, The Connaught Bar evokes English and Irish Cubist art of the 1920s, with timeless elegance.
The book is available for purchase priced at £29.95 from The Connaught Shop, which also houses a variety of cocktail-making accessories, such as the cocktail shaker, glassware, and even a heritage house-distilled Connaught Gin are available to help recreate The Connaught Bar experience at home, as well as other leading national stockists.
‘I have been a chef for over 30 years. My life’s passion and my profession revolve around flavour, ingredients, techniques, ideas and hospitality. When I think about The Connaught Bar, I return again and again to the hospitality, the methodology and the quality experiences that I have experienced there over the past decade.’ – Massimo Bottura, from the foreword
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Agostino Perrone is Director of Mixology at the Connaught and Connaught Bar in Mayfair, London. After moving from Italy to London in 2003, he worked at a variety of esteemed establishments before moving to The Connaught in 2008, where he has revolutionized the hotel bar scene. His unique approach to hospitality and mixology has garnered international acclaim and accolades. Maura Milia is the former Bar Manager and Giorgio Bargiani is Assistant Director of Mixology at the Connaught Bar, London. Anistatia Miller is an award-winning drinks historian and cocktail specialist.
ABOUT THE CONNAUGHT
At the centre of London’s Mayfair, The Connaught, managed by Maybourne, redefines the British luxury experience. An expertly judged blend of tradition with the utmost modernity, and is the insider’s choice of connoisseurs in the art of living well. The Connaught includes a magnificent selection of traditional and contemporary guest rooms, suites and interiors, as well as the United Kingdom’s first ever Aman Spa, a David Collins Studio designed penthouse. Michelin chef restaurants by Helene Darroze, Jean George and the multi award winning Connaught Bar and Coburg bar along with the Red Room create a destination for dining and drinking in London. A delightful Japanese influenced garden and by renowned landscape artist Tom Stuart-Smith, and a Ballroom for international and local Mayfair events makes The Connaught Hotel a true London landmark.
ABOUT MAYBOURNE
Maybourne operates Claridge’s, The Connaught, The Berkeley, The Emory, The Maybourne Beverly Hills and The Maybourne Riviera, some of the world’s most legendary luxury hotels. Maybourne is committed to inspiring extraordinary experiences that reflect the individual nature of its hotels, its guests and its staff whilst maintaining a timeless and intuitive service style that are the hallmarks of its priorities.
ABOUT PHAIDON
Phaidon is the premier global publisher of the creative arts with over 1,500 titles in print. They work with the world’s most influential artists, chefs, writers, and thinkers to produce innovative books on art, photography, design, architecture, fashion, food and travel, and illustrated books for children. Phaidon is headquartered in London and New York City.
For further information, please contact Maybourne Press Office:
zzpressoffice@maybourne.com
