Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari: In Search of the Great 'Lost' Tropical Drink Recipes…and the People Behind Them

by Jeff Beachbum Berry

By the author of Beachbum Berry's Grog Log, Beachbum Berry's Intoxica! and Beachbum Berry's Taboo Table.

Jeff Berry (or 'Beachbum Berry', as he is better known), is America's leading authority on tropical drinks and polynesian pop culture. In this all-new book, Berry not only offers up tantilizing new drink recipes, but tells stories about some of the most famous figures of their time.

The Bum applies the same dogged research to the untold stories of the people behind the drinks. Stories culled from over 100 interviews with those who actually created the mid-century tiki scene - people as colorful as the drinks they invented, or served, or simply drank. People like: Leon Lontoc, Don The Beachcomber's waiter who served Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando by night and acted in their movies by day; Henry Riddle, the Malibu Seacomber bartender who fed items about his famous customers to infamous gossip columnist Louella Parsons, till the day Howard Hughes found him out; and Duke Kamanamoku, whose manager turned him from Olympic champion into reluctant restaurateur.

Genres: Cocktails, Cookbooks, Food, Nonfiction, History, Booze, Cooking

174 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2007

About the author

One of Imbibe magazine’s “25 Most Influential Cocktail Personalities of the Past Century” and one of The Daily Meal’s “60 Coolest People in Food & Drink,” Jeff “Beachbum” Berry is the author of six books on vintage Tiki drinks and cuisine, which Los Angeles magazine dubbed “the keys to the tropical kingdom.” Esquire calls him “one of the instigators of the cocktail revolution” and Food & Wine “one of the world’s leading rum experts,” while Las Vegas magazine cites him as “one of the world’s leading mixologists.” Jeff’s been profiled in the New York Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, Wine Enthusiast magazine, the New Orleans Times-Picayune and the Florida Sun-Sentinel; he’s also been featured in the Wall Street Journal and Every Day with Rachael Ray, as well as on PBS Television, the Travel Channel, National Public Radio, and Martha Stewart Living Radio.

“A hybrid of street-smart gumshoe, anthropologist and mixologist” (The Los Angeles Times) and “the Indiana Jones of Tiki drinks” (The New York Times), Jeff has co-created Total Tiki for iPad and iPhone, a drink recipe app which Macworld magazine calls “beautifully rendered and, thanks to Berry’s tireless reporting, impeccably sourced.” He’s also co-created a line of Tiki barware with Cocktail Kingdom, which Imbibe hails as “especially notable because it revives old styles of essential glassware that were previously almost impossible to find.”

Jeff’s original cocktail recipes have been printed in publications around the world, from Bon Appetit and Fine Cooking magazines to such books as World’s Best Cocktails and the venerable Mr. Boston Official Bartenders Guide. And now his drinks are being served at his restaurant in New Orleans, Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29, which the New Orleans Advocate calls “a treasure chest of the tastes and attitude that first made Tiki so popular, curated by someone uniquely qualified for the task”; in its first year, Latitude 29 made the “best” lists of Playboy, Esquire, and New Orleans magazines.

Jeff has written for Saveur and Caribbean Travel & Life magazines, and has conducted tropical drink seminars and tastings across the U.S., Europe, and Latin America.

Reviews

[Wayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jeff Berry is single-handedly restoring respect to the tiki drink, which has for too long been a hipster joke When these cocktails first appeared in the 1930s, they were complex, fascinating, and very tasty. The modern counterparts are all about the fruity juice and the little umbrellas. The spirits are an afterthought.

Berry sets us straight on that -- the original drinks used comlex aged rums -- and writes about the unsung heroes (mostly Filipino immigrant bartenders) who concocted and perfected these sadly forgotten drinks. Despite being a self-proclaimed beachbum, Berry proved himself to be a dogged great sleuth, with more than enough stamina to get to the bottom of enduring questions such as: what exactly was in the original Zombie (1934)?

Added bonus: great photos and illustrations.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sippin' Safari has some truly rare information. Jeff Berry has clearly done some serious research to gather these recipes and the stories behind them. The vintage artwork and Tiki paraphernalia on every page livens things up quite a bit.
Even if it weren't for the recipes, it would be just about worth reading the book for this passage alone:

...they drank tobacco juice until they threw up, crapped themselves, and fainted, at which point their spirit was released to commune with the gods.

The recipes, though, are the real cornerstone of Sippin' and they're all listed in the index. The Drink Ingredient Glossary is also an extremely handy reference which can double as a shopping list.

[Barry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book by the Beachbum and once again I have to say I love it.

This book is a search for lost tropical drinks and the people who made them. This is definitely more of a tiki-cocktail history than just another book of cocktail recipes and is very readable. The focus is on significant bartenders and mixologists of the 20th Century. As one can imagine the people are interesting with captivating lives and one learns very much about a slice of America that doesn't really exist anymore. I never realised just how many of the great tiki-bartenders were of Filipino heritage.

A really good book which doesn't just focus on Donn Beach and Trader Vic.

[Alley McGlynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author has put so much fantastic research and dedication into this book. I loved the layout of the book with the recipes, photos and illustrations. Such an enjoyable and interesting read. Now I just need a cocktail!

[Brian Parker]

It might not be the best organized history, but nobody else was doing it; there would be no tiki revival without Berry hunting down the original bartenders (or their descendants) and doing the detective work he did, both documenting lost history and decoding "trade secret" drink recipes.

[Marius Krautmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is not a star in the whole universe I wouldnt give to Beachbum Berry for those amazingly reconstructed recipes.

[Beyonder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything erything it says on the tin and more! This book dives into a deeply interesting slice of American history while still staying very true to its topic. more than simple drink recipes and anecdotes... this book gives context and culture to the drinks and presents us the type of big picture that only dedicated research can bring.

the design and layout of this book is incredible too... down to the faux newsprint feel of these paper it was printed on. the period photos, postcards, advertisements and other tiki-culture artifacts are on par with any museum exhibit.

This book is a consummate experience and it contains amazingly authentic drink recipes. You will not be sad to own it.

[Alohatiki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book that is beyond just drink recipes. Nice to get the back story on so many classic tiki bars and how hard people worked to make them successful.

[Pixie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of research, lots of info, lots of recipes. Fun graphics. An impressive and important contribution to cocktail history and to tiki culture.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tiki Drink recipes filtered through the personal reminisces of the bartenders and entrepreneurs who invented them.

[Lauren Patton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read, really engaging. The Bum is a delightful writer and this is necessary history for any tropical cocktail aficionado.