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Shag-a-delic Drinks That Rocke

Title: Tiki Drinks
Author: Adam Rocke
Illustrations: Shag
Publisher: Surrey Books

Rating: Storm Warning

Tiki Drinks offers a glimpse of the terrific tropical drinks of the 1950s and a handful of their contemporaries. Author Adam Rocke wisely stays away from hard-to-acquire mixes, listing the fruit juices that separate Tiki cocktails from the rest. He is no slave to the blender, offering many tangy treats served on the rocks or straight up.

In 1997 Adam Rocke authored the book Atomic Bodyslams to Whiskey Zippers: Cocktails for the 21st Century (Surrey Books), which offers four helpful hints to enhance your mixology skills.

One of the things we liked most about the author is his great taste in cocktails. We found a number of our favorites listed, including the Coconut Kiss, Big Bamboo Love Song, Blue Marlin, Tiki Mai Tai, T.I. Special and Viequenese.

Trippy illustrations by artist Shag transform this book from a simple recipe resource to a tasteful gift for the cocktail enthusiast.

1. Unless you are pouring the ingredients directly the glass they'll be served in, use a mixing glass and keep your strainer nearby. Not only does this look better but it usually tastes better, as the various ingredients will have been combined more thoroughly. Interestingly, some drinks - the way I learned them - were supposed to be stirred, not shaken. As time went on, I found that most customers preferred them to be shaken, not stirred.

2. Unless it is otherwise specified, always, always, always chill a cocktail glass before serving a drink in it. This can be done by: a0 filling it with ice cubes while you mix the drink, b0 filling it with ice water while you mix the drink, or c) refrigerate it for 30-60 minutes before using it.

3. To frost a glass with salt or sugar, use a lemon or lime wedge to moisten the rim of the glass; then dip the rim into a saucer filled with the salt or sugar. Be careful not to press too hard, especially with glasses that have a thin edge. To frost with ice, dip the rim of the glass in water then place in a freezer for 30-45 minutes. For frosting beer mugs, dip the entire mug in water.

4. To put ice in a glass, never dip the glass into the ice bucket. This is a good way to incur a lawsuit. Always bring the ice to the glass by means or a scooper, preferably made with metal or hard plastic.