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# Susan L. Schwartz

## Sitemaps
- [XML Sitemap](https://alushlifemanual.com/sitemap_index.xml): Includes all crawlable and indexable pages.

## Posts
- [How to Make the Fig Leaf Negroni](https://alushlifemanual.com/fig-leaf-negroni/): The Fig Leaf Negroni keeps everything you love about the original, the ruby color, the bittersweet bite, the ritual of the stir, and adds a soft, jammy depth that suits the changing light.
- [How to Make the Apple Cider Whiskey Sour](https://alushlifemanual.com/apple-cider-whiskey-sour/): Some drinks taste like a season. The Apple Cider Whiskey Sour is one of them. Bourbon, fresh apple cider, bright lemon, and a touch of maple, shaken until frothy and finished with a cinnamon-dusted apple slice.
- [JW Steakhouse Celebrates the Best of American Hospitality with Autumnal Old Fashioneds & a Traditional Thanksgiving Feast](https://alushlifemanual.com/jw-steakhouse-autumnal-old-fashioneds/): As autumn sets in, JW Steakhouse in London is embracing the season with a new collection of seasonal Old Fashioneds and the return of its much-loved Thanksgiving Feast
- [Harp of Darkness: Master of Malt’s New Irish Whiskey](https://alushlifemanual.com/harp-of-darkness/): For years, Master of Malt's Head of Whisky, Dr. Sam Simmons (one of my former Lush Life guests!) has watched the pub ritual of pairing a pint of the black stuff with a whiskey sidecar. So he set out to create one with enough roasted, malty character to stand up to “a pint of plain”, while still being fun, sociable and completely un-snobby… 
- [How to Make the Smoked Cherry Old Fashioned](https://alushlifemanual.com/smoked-cherry-old-fashioned/): There is something wonderful about the moment smoke curls out of a cocktail glass. It signals that the drink in front of you is about to be something special. The Smoked Cherry Old Fashioned delivers on that promise: dark cherry, warm bourbon, a drift of woodsmoke, and a flash of orange oil on top.
- [How to Make the Revolver Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/revolver-cocktail/): Some cocktails earn their place the moment you taste them. The Revolver cocktail is one of those. Three ingredients, one flamed orange peel, and a glass that tastes like roasted coffee, caramel, and warm spice.
- [How to Make the Spiced Pear Bellini](https://alushlifemanual.com/spiced-pear-bellini/): Pears have a soft, floral sweetness and a silky texture that blends into a lovely, creamy purée. Paired with Prosecco, they make a drink that feels light but rich in flavor. The Spiced Pear Bellini is a companion to the original, a way to keep that Venetian aperitivo ritual going as the weather cools.
- [How to Make the Cardinal Spritz](https://alushlifemanual.com/cardinal-spritz/): Every October I start craving a spritz in deeper colors. The light turns golden and low, the evenings cool, and the aperitivo hour deserves a drink to match.
- [How to Make 10 Easy Thanksgiving Cocktails](https://alushlifemanual.com/thanksgiving-cocktails/): Can I make Thanksgiving cocktails ahead of time?Yes, to a point. The brown butter bourbon and the syrups can be made in advance, and the Apple Cider Spritz can be batched, as long as you add the prosecco and soda when you pour.
- [How to Make the Corpse Reviver No. 1](https://alushlifemanual.com/corpse-reviver-no-1/): Brandy, apple brandy, and sweet vermouth, stirred cold and served short. The Corpse Reviver No. 1 has a name that sounds like a dare and a flavor that is pure comfort: baked apple, dried fruit, warm spice, and a gentle bitter edge. It is a stirred drink for people who like their cocktails serious but not stern.
- [How to Make the Dirty Pickle Martini](https://alushlifemanual.com/dirty-pickle-martini/): Meet the Dirty Pickle Martini: gin or vodka, dry vermouth, and dill pickle brine. A cold, savory twist with tips, variations, and an easy recipe.
- [How to Make the Midori Sour](https://alushlifemanual.com/midori-sour/): The Midori Sour has a reputation as a neon party drink, which is exactly why it deserves a second look. Made with fresh citrus instead of bottled sour mix, the melon liqueur turns crisp, juicy, and bright, with a tart snap that keeps the sweetness in check. Think of it as the most colorful member of the sour family, and one of the easiest to make.
- [How to Make Blue Chair Bay Rum Pumpkin Spiced Rum Cream Cocktails](https://alushlifemanual.com/blue-chair-bay-rum-pumpkin-spiced-rum-cream-cocktails/): Blue Chair Bay Rum, the premium rum brand founded and created by award-winning singer-songwriter Kenny Chesney, is welcoming fall with the new, limited-edition Pumpkin Spiced Rum Cream.
- [How to Make the Pumpkin Spice Old Fashioned](https://alushlifemanual.com/pumpkin-spice-old-fashioned/): The Old Fashioned is built to be left alone, which is exactly why a seasonal twist feels so fun. Here, pumpkin spice syrup takes the place of the sugar cube, so the drink keeps its classic backbone of whiskey, sweetener, and bitters while picking up cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove. Think of it as pumpkin spice season for people who want the bourbon to stay the star.
- [How to Make the Dirty Negroni](https://alushlifemanual.com/dirty-negroni/): Meet the Dirty Negroni: gin, Campari, sweet vermouth, and a splash of olive brine for a savory aperitivo twist. Recipe, tips, history, and variations.
- [How to Make the Kentucky Colonel](https://alushlifemanual.com/kentucky-colonel/): If the Old Fashioned is bourbon's most famous showcase, the Kentucky Colonel is its quietest cousin. Just two ingredients, bourbon and Bénédictine, stirred and served over ice, with a name straight out of the South's favorite honorary title. Simple, spiced, and criminally underordered.
- [How to Make the Seelbach Cocktail: Louisville’s Best-Told Lie](https://alushlifemanual.com/seelbach-cocktail/): Some cocktail origin stories are almost too good to be true. The Seelbach's actually is too good to be true, dreamed up by a Louisville bartender in 1995 who claimed he'd rediscovered a lost 1917 house recipe, and got away with it for over twenty years. Bourbon, orange liqueur, bitters, and champagne, with a story better than most true ones.
- [How to Make the Twelve Mile Limit](https://alushlifemanual.com/twelve-mile-limit/): Prohibition drinkers didn't wait around for the law to catch up. The Twelve Mile Limit is named after the exact stretch of water where American booze law stopped and the real party started, a three-spirit knockout of rum, rye, and brandy, sharpened with lemon and grenadine. Strong enough to justify the boat ride.
- [How to Make the Monkey Gland](https://alushlifemanual.com/monkey-gland/): Named after one of the strangest medical fads of the 1920s, the Monkey Gland pairs gin and orange juice with a splash of absinthe and grenadine, and somehow makes the combination work beautifully. It's one of the odder cocktail origin stories out there, and one of the tastier reasons to keep a bottle of absinthe on hand. Here's how to make it properly, and why the name is stranger than the drink.
- [How to Make the Chrysanthemum](https://alushlifemanual.com/chrysanthemum-cocktail/): Not every classic cocktail needs a full pour of spirit to earn its place in the pre-Prohibition canon. The Chrysanthemum leans almost entirely on dry vermouth, dressed up with Bénédictine and a whisper of absinthe, and it has been quietly overlooked since it first appeared in 1916.
- [How to Make the Widow’s Kiss](https://alushlifemanual.com/widows-kiss-cocktail/): The Widow's Kiss first appeared in print in 1895, in George J. Kappeler's Modern American Drinks, one of the earliest American cocktail books and a document of just how sophisticated bar culture had become before Prohibition.
- [The Bars That Have Outlived Empires](https://alushlifemanual.com/bars-that-outlived-empires/): Some bars have been around for so long that the world outside their doors has changed completely. Empires have risen and fallen, cities have been rebuilt, and generations have come and gone. Despite that, people continue to walk through these doors for the same simple reasons: to have a drink, take a seat, and socialise.
- [How to Make the Navy Grog](https://alushlifemanual.com/navy-grog/): By the 1940s, Donn Beach had turned a Prohibition-era juice bar into the birthplace of tiki, and he was not interested in watered-down anything. His Navy Grog kept the name and abandoned the modesty: three rums, honey, lime, and grapefruit, built to be strong, tart, and faintly dangerous in the way all his best drinks were. It's the version that survives on menus today, and it's worth knowing properly rather than as tiki wallpaper.
- [Kensington at 9: The K Bar Introduces a New Nightly Martini Ritual](https://alushlifemanual.com/kensington-at-9/): From 9pm, every classic martini arrives with a little something extra - a Kensington Blue cone of house-made, Irish-inspired crisps
- [How to Make the Corn ‘n’ Oil](https://alushlifemanual.com/corn-n-oil-cocktail/): There's something wonderfully theatrical about the Corn 'n' Oil. It's a drink built to be looked at before it's stirred, with the dark rum settling on top of the falernum like oil floating on water.
- [How to Make the B&B Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/b-and-b-cocktail/): There are cocktails that arrive with a lot of fuss, and then there's the B&B. Two ingredients, a glass, and that's pretty much the whole story.
- [How to Make the Park Avenue Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/park-avenue-cocktail/): The Park Avenue cocktail mixes gin, vermouth, pineapple juice, and curaçao into a forgotten 1940s classic worth making again.
- [How to Make the Salty Dog](https://alushlifemanual.com/salty-dog-cocktail/): There is something so satisfying about a cocktail that asks for almost nothing and gives back everything. The Salty Dog is exactly that kind of drink, and once you understand why the salt matters, you will never order a Greyhound without it again.
- [How to Make the Scofflaw Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/scofflaw-cocktail/): There is something so satisfying about a drink with a backbone of real history, and the Scofflaw has one of the best stories in the whole classic cocktail canon. It is proof that even a word invented to shame people into behaving better can end up attached to something this delicious.
- [How to Make a French Kiss](https://alushlifemanual.com/french-kiss-cocktail/): The French Kiss cocktail might have a rather romantic name, but there is nothing frivolous about what is in the glass. Made with equal parts dry vermouth and red vermouth, it is wonderfully simple, bittersweet and aromatic, with a lemon twist bringing everything together.
- [How to Make the Silver Bullet Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/silver-bullet-cocktail/): With a name like the Silver Bullet, you might expect something complicated. Instead, this wonderfully old school cocktail brings together gin, kümmel and fresh lemon juice in a drink that is sharp, herbal and unlike most gin cocktails you are probably making at home.
- [How to Make the American Beauty Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/american-beauty-cocktail/): The earliest American Beauty Cocktail I can document appears in Beverages de Luxe, published in Louisville in 1911 by George R. Washburne and Stanley Bronner. Interestingly, that drink was completely different from the one we know today, combining French vermouth, Old Tom gin and lime juice.
- [How to Make the Turin Cocktail from Kimpton Vividora Barcelona](https://alushlifemanual.com/turin-cocktail/): Barcelona and Turin come together in the Turin Cocktail, a rich, bittersweet serve from Kimpton Vividora Barcelona. Gin forms the base, while Italian Cocchi Bitter and Cocchi Dry bring the drink firmly into aperitivo territory, before coffee, cacao and passion fruit take it somewhere rather unexpected.
- [How to Enjoy Barcelona Hotel Bar Week 2.0 with Founder Bianca Grisolia and Four of the Bartenders Behind It](https://alushlifemanual.com/barcelona-hotel-bar-week-2026/): Now, thanks to our guest today, Barcelona’s stepping into the spotlight again with more than 30 of its best great hotel bars teaming up for the second Barcelona Hotel Bar Week. 
- [How to Make the Diplomat Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/diplomat-cocktail/): The Diplomat Cocktail is proof that vermouth doesn't always have to play second fiddle to gin or whiskey. Made with dry and sweet vermouth, just a touch of maraschino liqueur and Angostura bitters, it's an elegant, lower-alcohol classic that deserves to be better known.
- [How to Make a French Blonde: Is This Really Taylor Swift’s Favorite Cocktail?](https://alushlifemanual.com/french-blonde-cocktail/): If Taylor Swift orders a cocktail, you can pretty much guarantee people are going to want to know what is in it. That is exactly what happened to the French Blonde, a combination of gin, Lillet Blanc, St-Germain, fresh grapefruit juice and lemon bitters.
- [How to Make the Red Hook Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/red-hook-cocktail/): Learn how to make the Red Hook Cocktail with rye, Punt e Mes and maraschino, plus the story of this modern New York cocktail classic.
- [How to Make the Brooklyn Cocktail](https://alushlifemanual.com/brooklyn-cocktail/): The Manhattan may get all the attention, but cross the East River and you’ll find one of its most interesting relatives. The Brooklyn cocktail is a wonderfully old-school combination of rye whiskey, vermouth, maraschino liqueur and a bitter aperitif, resulting in something drier and slightly more complex than its famous neighbor.
- [How to Make the Blizzard](https://alushlifemanual.com/blizzard-cocktail/): The Blizzard might sound like something you should be drinking halfway up a ski slope, but there is no cream, coconut or avalanche of crushed ice involved. Instead, this wonderfully simple whiskey cocktail brings together bourbon, cranberry, fresh lemon and simple syrup for a drink that is fruity, tart and surprisingly refreshing.
- [How to Host a Cocktail Night at Home: From the First Pour to the Perfect Atmosphere](https://alushlifemanual.com/host-a-cocktail-night/):  There’s probably nothing easier to organize than a cocktail party at your own place. No booking is needed; you don’t have to queue up for seating in a crowded bar or wait for somebody to signal you that your table is ready for another round.
- [test](https://alushlifemanual.com/test/)
- [How to Make The Dirt Road Martini: A Tribute to Dolly Parton](https://alushlifemanual.com/dirt-road-martini-dolly-parton-tribute/): The Dirt Road Martini is Dolly's own, a three ingredient cocktail she created with her sister Rachel Parton George for their cookbook, Good Lookin' Cookin'. It swaps vermouth for unsweetened iced tea and olive brine for giardiniera juice, and the pickled vegetables double as the garnish. It's humble where it needs to be and sharp where it counts. Felt like the right kind of toast.
- [Cocchi + Rudy’s Pizza Napoletana = Amazing Negronis!](https://alushlifemanual.com/cocchi-rudys/): Italian vermouth and aperitivo producer Cocchi is proud to announce it has secured a new partnership with Rudy’s Pizza Napoletana starting September.
- [Canned Cocktails: Everything You Need to Know](https://alushlifemanual.com/canned-cocktails-everything-you-need-to-know/): Canned cocktails, or RTDs as they are known in the drinks industry, have become a serious part of the cocktail world. The category has also become rather confusing. Hard seltzers, spirit and mixers, wine-based drinks and actual cocktails can all occupy the same bit of supermarket real estate, although what is inside those cans can be very different.
- [The Perception Bar Repositions as Soho’s Home of Agave](https://alushlifemanual.com/the-perception-bar-agave-menu/): If you thought London had reached peak tequila, think again. This September, The Perception Bar at W London is putting agave firmly at the heart of its new cocktail menu, with tequila and mezcal joined by a much wider world of agave spirits from Mexico and further afield.
- [Lush Guide: 20 Best Wine Regions Around the World](https://alushlifemanual.com/best-wine-regions/): Wine lovers know that a great tasting tour is about more than just sampling different vintages—it’s an experience that blends culture, scenery, and the art of winemaking.
- [How to Make a Plum Sour](https://alushlifemanual.com/plum-sour/): There is something about plums that makes them particularly good cocktail material. Depending on the variety and just how ripe they are, they can be sweet, tart, floral and wonderfully juicy, which means they can stand up to a spirit without disappearing into it.
- [Diageo Rare Series 2026: Five Extraordinary Scotch Whiskies Worth Knowing](https://alushlifemanual.com/diageo-rare-series-2026/): There are rare whiskies, and then there are whiskies that have spent so long in cask that the distillery that made them has disappeared altogether. Diageo Rare Series 2026 brings together five extraordinary single malt Scotch whiskies from Glenury Royal, Clynelish, Caol Ila, Talisker and Blair Athol, with ages ranging from 33 to an astonishing 55 years.
- [How to Gain Essential Cocktail Techniques & Skills](https://alushlifemanual.com/cocktail-techniques-skills/): You have the spirits. You have the mixers. You've bought the shaker, jigger and all those lovely glasses. Now you actually have to make the cocktail.
- [How to Choose the Best Home Bar Mixers & Ingredients: Tonics, Juices, Syrups & More](https://alushlifemanual.com/home-bar-mixers-ingredients/): The good news is that you don't need to fill your refrigerator with every juice, mixer and garnish known to bartending. My Lush Guide to home bar mixers and ingredients covers what is actually worth keeping around, from tonics and fresh citrus to syrups, bitters, garnishes and a few extras to add as your cocktail repertoire expands.
- [How to Make the Best Fall Cocktails](https://alushlifemanual.com/best-fall-cocktails/): This is our list of the best fall cocktails, ten classics, each with a genuine claim to the season, and each written out in full so you can actually make it tonight, not just admire it from afar. Some are built for slow sipping in a wingback chair. Others are strictly for holding with both hands. All of them earn their place on a fall bar cart.
- [How to Make the Ranch Water](https://alushlifemanual.com/ranch-water/): Ask for a Ranch Water in a bar in Marfa or Fort Worth and nobody blinks. Ask for one in London five years ago and you'd have gotten a blank stare. That's changed fast, and it's easy to see why: this is tequila, lime and fizz, and nothing else is getting in the way.
- [National Spritz Day is here August 1!](https://alushlifemanual.com/national-spritz-day/): One of my fav holidays is here! To mark the occasion, I am working with LMB UK to reveal a few of my favorite spritz flavors!
- [ARCHIVE & MYTH UNVIELS NEW COCKTAIL MENU, SECOND NATURE!](https://alushlifemanual.com/archive-myth-new-menu/): One of my fav bars in London has introduced a new collection of 16 signature creations, Second Nature,  that refine classic serves through visuals, texture and an air of whimsy!!
- [Top 10 Countries Drinking the Most Scotch Whisky (2026)](https://alushlifemanual.com/countries-drinking-the-most-scotch-whisky/): Scotch whisky is enjoyed in more than 160 countries around the world, with the equivalent of 43 bottles exported every second. According to the latest figures from the Scotch Whisky Association, global exports were worth £5.3 billion in 2025, even as economic pressures affected many markets.
- [Lush Guide: Best Hotel Bars in Venice (2026)](https://alushlifemanual.com/best-hotel-bars-in-venice/): I've put together a list of the best hotel bars in Venice, so you can plan your visit to Venice accordingly! Plus, I've included a few Venetian classic recipes at the end!
- [The Gin Cocktail That Came Before the Martini](https://alushlifemanual.com/martinez2/): The Martinez sits right at the crossroads of cocktail history. Often called the missing link between the Manhattan and the Martini, it is richer, softer, and a little more indulgent than the drinks that followed. If you like your cocktails stirred, aromatic, and just slightly sweet, this is one to know.
- [The Heart of the Hotel: The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong](https://alushlifemanual.com/ritz-carlton-shanghai-pudong/): Step inside and if you listen closely, you can hear it—the clink of glass, the shake of ice, the bursts of laughter, the roar of celebration. It’s a cacophony of cocktails…at one time a Strauss waltz, another a Herrmann score. Even if you wanted to resist it, the pull is too strong.
- [Venice Cocktail Week Returns for Its 5th Year!](https://alushlifemanual.com/venice-cocktail-week-2026/): The fifth edition of the event, conceived and directed by Paola Mencarelli under the patronage of the Municipality of Venice, in collaboration with Venezia Unica and with the support of Vela, will take place in the finest Hotel Bars and Cocktail Bars of the Serenissima from Wednesday, October 21 to Sunday, October 25, 2026, to promote a culture of Conscious and Responsible Drinking and to enhance the quality of mixology in the City of Venice.
- [The Heart of the Hotel: Mandarin Oriental Shenzhen](https://alushlifemanual.com/mandarin-oriental-shenzhen/): Step inside and if you listen closely, you can hear it—the clink of glass, the shake of ice, the bursts of laughter, the roar of celebration. It’s a cacophony of cocktails…at one time a Strauss waltz, another a Herrmann score. Even if you wanted to resist it, the pull is too strong.
- [The Heart of the Hotel: The Upper House, Hong Kong](https://alushlifemanual.com/upper-house-hong-kong/): Step inside and if you listen closely, you can hear it—the clink of glass, the shake of ice, the bursts of laughter, the roar of celebration. It’s a cacophony of cocktails…at one time a Strauss waltz, another a Herrmann score. Even if you wanted to resist it, the pull is too strong.

## Pages
- [Lush Life Podcast](https://alushlifemanual.com/lush-life-podcast/): Join me as I meet the bartenders, distillers, makers, writers and personalities behind what we drink.
- [My Venice](https://alushlifemanual.com/my-venice/): Asking me to name my favorite bars in Venice is a little like asking me to choose my favorite child. I simply cannot.
- [Where I Drink in London](https://alushlifemanual.com/where-to-drink-in-london/): London is one of the greatest drinking cities in the world. I know I’m biased, but after more than twenty years of drinking my way around it, I’m sticking to that statement.
- [Home Bartending](https://alushlifemanual.com/home-bartending/): Everything you need to set up your home bar, learn the techniques, and mix with confidence.
- [Asian Spirits and Wines](https://alushlifemanual.com/asian-spirits-and-wines/): There is, of course, no single thing called an Asian spirit. Across a continent of vastly different cultures and climates, drinks have developed from whatever ingredients, techniques and traditions were available locally.
- [Wine in Cocktails](https://alushlifemanual.com/wine-in-cocktails/): Wine might not be the first thing you think of when stocking a cocktail cabinet, but take it away and some of the world's greatest drinks disappear.
- [Cocktail Recipes](https://alushlifemanual.com/cocktail-recipe/): Recipes, history, techniques and bartender tips to help you make better drinks at home.
- [Great Bars](https://alushlifemanual.com/lush-guides/): From legendary hotel bars to tiny neighborhood favorites, discover the bars, cities and drinking destinations worth knowing.
- [Home](https://alushlifemanual.com/): Recipes, travel stories, insider bar guides and conversations with the people shaping drinking culture.
- [Book](https://alushlifemanual.com/book/)
- [A Guide to Drinking in Venice](https://alushlifemanual.com/a-guide-to-drinking-in-venice/): Since its foundation in the year 421 AD, Venice has perfected the art of living well. Its merchants brought back seductive wines, explorers wrote of invigorating drinks, and visitors added their own traditions. All the ingredients for a great cocktail.
- [Disclaimer](https://alushlifemanual.com/disclaimer/): This is a personal blog. Any views or opinions represented in this blog are personal and belong solely to me, the blog owner and do not represent those of people, institutions or organizations that the owner may or may not be associated with in professional or personal capacity, unless explicitly stated. Any views or opinions are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, or individual.
- [Old Home](https://alushlifemanual.com/home-2/): My new book has arrived!!
- [My Podcasting Resources](https://alushlifemanual.com/podcasting-resources/): No matter what stage you are on the podcasting journey, you've got to keep up with the best podcast resources out there. Everything on this list, I have used or has been recommended to me by my producer, Evo Terra of Simpler Media Productions. Hopefully, it will make the search for podcast resources a bit easier.
- [My Blogging Resources](https://alushlifemanual.com/my-blogging-resources/): If you came to this page, I know you must be looking for recommendations on the best resources to starting a blog - whether it be a cocktail blog or a podcast or just interested in what I use!
- [Posts](https://alushlifemanual.com/posts/): All of the posts!
- [Transcripts](https://alushlifemanual.com/transcripts-from-lush-life-podcast/): Hello my drinking companions! Please find transcripts for all episodes of Lush Life Podcast below!
- [Home Bartending Tools](https://alushlifemanual.com/home-bartending-tools/): Boston Shaker
- [Spirits](https://alushlifemanual.com/spirits/): From gin and vodka to tequila, whisky, rum and beyond, explore the spirits behind your favorite cocktails and discover what to make with every bottle.
- [Other Drinking Stuff](https://alushlifemanual.com/other-drinking-stuff/): Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make any purchase after clicking on a link, I will receive a commission at no extra cost to you. I choose to work with each and every brand.  I am also a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. I am independent and all opinions are my own!
- [Shop](https://alushlifemanual.com/shop/): I love my cocktails and having a well-stocked home bar makes me smile.
- [Low and Non-Alcoholic Spirits](https://alushlifemanual.com/low-and-non-alcoholic-spirits/): Inspired in part by The Art of Distillation, a 17th-century book that included recipes for distilled non-alcoholic herbal remedies, Branson began experimenting with distilling botanicals at home. The result was Seedlip, which pioneered the modern category of distilled non-alcoholic spirits.
- [Books](https://alushlifemanual.com/books/): Every book on this list is in my library and has inspired me to create the cocktails I love to drink.
- [Calvados, Eaux-de-Vie & Fruit Brandies](https://alushlifemanual.com/fruit-brandies/): Then there is Calvados, Normandy's great apple brandy. Made from cider apples and, depending on the appellation, pears, Calvados is matured in oak, taking it from fresh orchard fruit into a world of baked apple, spice, nuts and wood.
- [Cachaça, Pisco & Other Latin American Spirits](https://alushlifemanual.com/cachaca-pisco-other-south-american-spirits/): There is no single definition of a Latin American spirit. Geography, climate, indigenous traditions, European colonisation and the ingredients growing locally have created an extraordinary range of drinks across the region.
- [Vodka](https://alushlifemanual.com/vodka/): Vodka is a clear spirit distilled from a fermentable ingredient and traditionally associated with countries including Poland and Russia. Grain and potatoes may be the best known bases, but vodka can be made from wheat, rye, corn, grapes and even more unexpected ingredients.
- [Amaro, Aperitivo, and Digestivo](https://alushlifemanual.com/amaro-aperitif/): These are spirits built around one of Italy's great loves: bitterness. Amaro, literally “bitter” in Italian, is a broad family of bittersweet herbal liqueurs traditionally made by infusing or macerating herbs, roots, spices, flowers, citrus and other botanicals in alcohol before sweetening the result.
- [Brandy, Cognac, Armagnac & Grappa](https://alushlifemanual.com/grape-brandy/): Brandy is a spirit distilled from wine or other fermented fruit. Cognac and Armagnac are both brandies, but each can only be made in its designated region of France according to specific rules. Grappa is the outlier: instead of distilling wine, Italians make it from vinaccia — the grape skins, seeds and other solids left behind after winemaking.
- [Tequila & Mezcal](https://alushlifemanual.com/tequila-mezcal/): Tequila and mezcal are Mexican spirits made from agave — but they are not the same thing. Tequila must be made from Blue Weber agave and within specific designated regions of Mexico, most famously Jalisco. Mezcal can be made from many different varieties of agave and has its own designated production areas, with Oaxaca at its heart.
- [Rum](https://alushlifemanual.com/rum-2/): Rum is a spirit made from sugarcane, either from fresh sugarcane juice or, more commonly, molasses. It can be clear and crisp, dark and rich, young and lively or aged for years in oak. Few spirits encompass quite such a broad range of styles.
- [Liqueurs](https://alushlifemanual.com/liqueurs/): Liqueurs are spirits that have been flavored and sweetened. Start with a base spirit, add fruit, herbs, spices, flowers, nuts, coffee or any number of other ingredients, and an enormous world opens up. Some are intensely bitter, others gloriously sweet, while many guard recipes involving dozens of botanicals that have remained secret for generations.
- [Whiskey](https://alushlifemanual.com/whisky/): Whisky is a spirit made by distilling fermented grain and, in most cases, ageing it in wood. Yet those grains, the type of still, the barrel and even the place where it is made can produce wildly different results, from light and fruity to rich and spicy, sweet and smooth, or intensely smoky.
- [Gin](https://alushlifemanual.com/gin/): At its simplest, gin is a spirit flavoured with juniper. That distinctive piney, fragrant note must be at its heart, but from there almost anything can happen. Coriander, citrus peel, angelica, orris, cardamom, herbs, flowers and countless other botanicals can all join the party, which is why one gin can taste completely different from the next.
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- [Recipes](https://alushlifemanual.com/the-recipes/)
- [Work with Lush Life](https://alushlifemanual.com/work-with-lush-life/): Since the launch of Lush Life, I've work with brands and destinations in so many different ways and I would be thrilled to discuss working with you on an individual basis.
- [The Bars](https://alushlifemanual.com/bars/): Riding into town and looking for the local saloon? Well, look no further.  We are doing the work for you. Check back and see if your favorite destinations have been trawled by Lush Life and we've created the go-to list of our favorite bars in a town near you!
- [About](https://alushlifemanual.com/about-me/): I’m Susan Schwartz, your drinking companion, and every day I’m inspired to live life one cocktail at a time!
- [Lush Life Podcast – OLD](https://alushlifemanual.com/podcast/): Lush Life Podcast is a weekly audio show that introduces you to the movers and shakers of the world’s most famous watering holes.