Book / Story
The Bartender’s Travelling Book started its journey on 13 May 2009, on *World Cocktail Day, at the initiative of Adam Slavík, who, as a frequent guest of cocktail bars and lover of cocktail culture, commissioned an exclusive book with blank pages out of respect and appreciation for master bartenders; it is now passed on by bartending greats, who make personal entries, and has gradually become an important relic among the bartending community around the world, which has taken up the idea. It is thus a perfect symbiosis of guest versus bartender respect ..
Adam Slavík
The first leading bartender to write a personal entry in the book was Václav Vojíř, from Prague's Bugsy’s bar, who confirmed the idea of the book with his exclusive first entry, but also christened the volume with what was probably the most expensive cocktail in the world at the time – the Manhattan Exclusive – giving it an extraordinary essence during its journey through the bartending world.
Vojíř then personally delivered The Bartender’s Travelling Book to the hands of the master of the classic drink and icon of the German bar scene Charles Schumann in Munich (Schumann’s Bar) and the book’s future was sealed.
Václav Vojíř
The principle of the book (which has 333 pages of handmade paper from one of the oldest paper mills in Europe - Velké Losiny Handmade Paper Mill, founded in 1591) is that the book is passed between bartenders, so there is no script determined in advance. The book’s current holder, to whom it is lent, decides who will have the book’s next page, which he or she marks with his or her name and location, a message and writes his or her original cocktail recipe with his or her signature.
The prominent London magazine The Cocktail Lovers aptly referred to the book as the Boomerang Book, as it travels the world and frequently returns to the world’s capitals. The book has visited cities such as London, Barcelona, Bratislava, Munich, Bangkok, Tokyo, New York, etc. Among the notable personalities who have graced the book with their entries are names like Stanislav Vadrna, Gary Regan (+), Simon Ford, Javier de las Muelas, Sean Muldoon, Jack McGarry, Kazuo Ueda, Jim Meehan, David Cordoba, Giancarlo Mancino, Salvatore Calabrese, Peter Dorelli, Giuliano Morandin, Salim Khoury (+), Erik Lorincz, Alessandro Palazzi, Simon Rowe, Agostino Perrone, Declan McGurk, Jared Brown, Ian Burrell, Giuliano Morandin, Julio Cabrera, Julio Bermejo, Serhan Kusaksizoglu á la Papa Charly, Simone Caporale, ... In 2022, William Pravda, bar manager of the luxury Capella Hotel in Hanoi, who is of Czech descent, came to the rescue to help the book and spread its uniqueness. The last time was at the Bar Convent in Berlin, where it was received by Simone Caporale (Sips Barcelona).
The artistic bookbinding of The Bartender’s Travelling Book was produced by the renowned master bookbinder Jiří Fogl (+1.11.2022), who is a founding member of the Association of Czech Bookbinders. The result is a beautiful book made of genuine cognac-coloured leather with precise workmanship and quality, which was given the utmost attention with regard to its frequent transport. Thanks to the materials used, its service life is truly long. It is dominated by a printing plate, embossed features and golden decoration.
Jiří Fogl
It has an image of historical uniqueness and, together with the entries, it is an artistic and precious work for present and future generations. Jiří Fogl received the title of Master of Bookbinding in the field of artistic and handmade bookbinding. He is, among other things, the maker of a copy of the binding of the largest book in the world - Codex Gigas, known as the Devil’s Bible. Fogle’s work is known to a former US president and US secretary of state, as well as to other important institutions.
Ondřej Pivec is a Czech-American musician, composer and producer playing keyboards. He made a name for himself in New York City as a top Hammond organ player, won a Grammy for Best Vocal Jazz Album with soul star Gregory Porter, and now not only performs, but also sings, writes and produces music, plays in three bands, and has genres ranging from beloved jazz to soul, R&B and funk to black gospel music.
The Bartender’s Travelling Book is tangible evidence of the community of bartenders around the world, across continents and cultures. It is a testament to the beautiful craft of bartending and fascinating personalities.
* World Cocktail Day is celebrated every year on 13 May and is a special day for all cocktails, bartenders and people who enjoy a good cocktail. Its spiritual father is the renowned bartender and journalist Alexander Mikšovic. And why 13 May? On this day in 1806, the first printing of “The Balance and Columbian Repository” was published, containing the first definition of the word “cocktail”.
