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Drinking with Dickens
Drinking with Dickens is a light-hearted sketch by Cedric Dickens, the great-grandson of Charles Dickens. There are vivid and memorable drinking scenes in Dickens' books, and Drinking with Dickens abounds in recipes, many based on the drinks of Dickensian England and America: Bishop, Dog's Nose, Hot Bowl Punch, Milk Punch, Mint Julep, Sherry Cobbler, Shrub and Negus, to mention only a few. Unbelievably it seems to be the first book on this vast and important subject, and Cedric has added some recipes and experiences of his own.
The Victorian sources include a penny notebook dated 1859 and kept by "Auntie Georgie," Georgina Hogarth, when she was looking after the younger children of Charles Dickens at Gads Hill. It starts with a recipe for Ginger Beer, a teetotal drink which calls for a quart of brandy!
Then there is the catalogue for the sale of Gads Hill after Charles Dickens died which shows what was in the cellar at that time.
This book transcends the generations. Cedric, with an eye for people and detail, describes a whole series of joyous episodes where drink, wisely taken, has been the catalyst.
The Victorian sources include a penny notebook dated 1859 and kept by "Auntie Georgie," Georgina Hogarth, when she was looking after the younger children of Charles Dickens at Gads Hill. It starts with a recipe for Ginger Beer, a teetotal drink which calls for a quart of brandy!
Then there is the catalogue for the sale of Gads Hill after Charles Dickens died which shows what was in the cellar at that time.
This book transcends the generations. Cedric, with an eye for people and detail, describes a whole series of joyous episodes where drink, wisely taken, has been the catalyst.
128 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 6, 2016
As a fan of both Dickens and booze this seemed the perfect book.
I fully plan to indulge in some Christmassy recipes one year in the not too distant future and redden my nose suitably.
As an aside the copy I bought, though not advertised as such, was signed by Cedric himself.
I fully plan to indulge in some Christmassy recipes one year in the not too distant future and redden my nose suitably.
As an aside the copy I bought, though not advertised as such, was signed by Cedric himself.
June 4, 2019
Review title: Trading on the family's name
While I love books--the feel, the look, the weight, even the smell--I usually buy them for their content. One of the first things I learned in my Master's program in library science was that the professional approach is to separate the content from the container. But sometimes, a book like this comes up and just begs to be bought for the container.
I found this at a charity shop on a trip to Bath in the UK in May 2019 at a reasonable price, and it was even autographed by the author--yes, the great-grandson of that Dickens. This relationship is noted on the cover, and when I realized that it was self-published, I knew that it was a rare opportunity regardless of the content.
As I don't even drink, the content in this case was kind of beside the point. The book is a small, good-natured stroll through drinks and drinkers mentioned in Dickens's books (Pickwick Papers being heavily represented), with recipes for mixing the drinks and asides by Cedric. This is harmless, silly fun, with nice reproductions of some of the artwork from the books that show drinking scenes. And of course to complete the tongue-in-cheeky humor, it includes an index of the recipes, a general index, footnotes to the Dickens quotes, an appendix on "The Great Port Controversy", and an appendix listing the contents of Charles Dickens's wine cellar from his will.
If you love Dickens (or I suppose experimenting with Victorian drink recipes) and find this small gem, you must buy it.
While I love books--the feel, the look, the weight, even the smell--I usually buy them for their content. One of the first things I learned in my Master's program in library science was that the professional approach is to separate the content from the container. But sometimes, a book like this comes up and just begs to be bought for the container.
I found this at a charity shop on a trip to Bath in the UK in May 2019 at a reasonable price, and it was even autographed by the author--yes, the great-grandson of that Dickens. This relationship is noted on the cover, and when I realized that it was self-published, I knew that it was a rare opportunity regardless of the content.
As I don't even drink, the content in this case was kind of beside the point. The book is a small, good-natured stroll through drinks and drinkers mentioned in Dickens's books (Pickwick Papers being heavily represented), with recipes for mixing the drinks and asides by Cedric. This is harmless, silly fun, with nice reproductions of some of the artwork from the books that show drinking scenes. And of course to complete the tongue-in-cheeky humor, it includes an index of the recipes, a general index, footnotes to the Dickens quotes, an appendix on "The Great Port Controversy", and an appendix listing the contents of Charles Dickens's wine cellar from his will.
If you love Dickens (or I suppose experimenting with Victorian drink recipes) and find this small gem, you must buy it.
December 22, 2020
Reading most of this small book is like bumping into a friend one afternoon and them saying, "hey, if you're not busy, you should come and meet my uncle" and then you find yourself in a large drawing room in an English country manor house where dear Uncle Ceddy, already into his second glass of port, tries to teach you how to make drinks while proving himself to have an encyclopedic knowledge of quotes from Dickens' novels, while also interrupting himself with personal anecdotes from the War or that time he went to South Africa or that time he went boating on the Thames, all with absolutely no context because he assumes you know everyone he does, and before you know it you're both absolutely sozzled and it's 3 AM and who knows where your friend disappeared to and Uncle Ceddy is your new best friend and yes, it makes perfect sense that drinking a bottle of champagne before flying and drinking 1/4 bottle every hour on the hour thereafter is the PERFECT cure for jet-lag.
That is to say that I had assumed the "Dickens" in the title was Charles, but realize that maybe it should have been Cedric. This is neither a recipe book, a memoir, a book of quotations, or a historical investigation of Dickens' relationship to alcohol. Perhaps one needs to have a few glasses of something to appreciate it.
I did enjoy reading about the contents of Dickens' Gads Hill cellars, though. Holy cow did he ever have a LOT of alcohol. I bet he (and Cedric for that matter) threw great parties.
That is to say that I had assumed the "Dickens" in the title was Charles, but realize that maybe it should have been Cedric. This is neither a recipe book, a memoir, a book of quotations, or a historical investigation of Dickens' relationship to alcohol. Perhaps one needs to have a few glasses of something to appreciate it.
I did enjoy reading about the contents of Dickens' Gads Hill cellars, though. Holy cow did he ever have a LOT of alcohol. I bet he (and Cedric for that matter) threw great parties.
January 29, 2025
Super interesting read! The history + fun drinking stories are an awesome partnership. The language is very dated making it a bit difficult to understand. Still very cool + I would definitely recommend it.
December 19, 2019
This is a must have for any Dickens fan. Very interesting and intimate peek into the fun traditions of their family
December 24, 2021
Rubbish.
January 4, 2024
A great book to read over the Christmas period. It helps to bring you closer to dickens and the 1800s.
November 28, 2009
While this work is often more about Cedric's tastes than that of his great-grandfather, this is still a charming work. Here is a compendium of the different tipples in all of Dickens' works, complete with recipes and quotations. While some of the recipes might be difficult to replicate in a modern kitchen, this will not stop me from trying to recreate Dickens' Gin Punch or Smoking Bishop.
January 7, 2008
Includes Mr. Micawber's famous gin punch recipe from David Copperfield! :)
I doubt I will make many of the drinks, however; it is more of a book to have for the fun of it... particularly if you are (like me) a huge fan of Charles Dickens. :)
I doubt I will make many of the drinks, however; it is more of a book to have for the fun of it... particularly if you are (like me) a huge fan of Charles Dickens. :)
November 13, 2012
preparada... para la fiesta del siglo!!! #drinkingwithdickens
August 18, 2015
A really fun read!
I got this on a whim. Dickens is a favorite author and I was curious to read this book. I will now have to get the hard back for reference.
I got this on a whim. Dickens is a favorite author and I was curious to read this book. I will now have to get the hard back for reference.
November 12, 2016
Interesting and entertaining
April 4, 2017
What an odd little book. Reminiscences of the author's life, stories of Charles Dickens' life, lists of CD's cellar contents, recipes for various beverages from CD's books, quotes from those books, all arranged in a haphazard disarray and an overall somewhat alcoholic miasma. Still—an enjoyable read, and I definitely am going to try out some of those recipes.
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September 14, 20172017-01 - Drinking with Dickens. Cedric Dickens (Author) 1983. 128 Pages.
Picked this up on a lark on the Library Free Shelf. I am a great fan of Charles Dickens and in his books; there is a fair amount of drinking. It was not excessive or highlighted rather a mirror of the times. The drinks that characters were drinking were not drinks common today … they are for an early 19th century palate. This book written by a grandchild of Charles Dickens takes on a journey through the works of Charles Dickens …looking at what was drunk and by whom. The chapters are arranged by type of drink, Ales, Punch, Wine, etc. And Yes! There are recipes for those libations. Yes I have tried some I have become a fan of Dogs Nose (Hot porter, sugar, 2 oz gin, and some nutmeg) Truthfully I have enjoyed mulled or heated spiced ale for quite some time. I know that drinking your beer hot is a shock to the prevailing culture but I swear … it can be stunningly great. This book is a fantastic accompaniment to the literature ... I only wish there was a cookbook as well.
Picked this up on a lark on the Library Free Shelf. I am a great fan of Charles Dickens and in his books; there is a fair amount of drinking. It was not excessive or highlighted rather a mirror of the times. The drinks that characters were drinking were not drinks common today … they are for an early 19th century palate. This book written by a grandchild of Charles Dickens takes on a journey through the works of Charles Dickens …looking at what was drunk and by whom. The chapters are arranged by type of drink, Ales, Punch, Wine, etc. And Yes! There are recipes for those libations. Yes I have tried some I have become a fan of Dogs Nose (Hot porter, sugar, 2 oz gin, and some nutmeg) Truthfully I have enjoyed mulled or heated spiced ale for quite some time. I know that drinking your beer hot is a shock to the prevailing culture but I swear … it can be stunningly great. This book is a fantastic accompaniment to the literature ... I only wish there was a cookbook as well.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews