'We bought a small bottle of Jamesons Irish Whiskey and a tub of single cream and hurried back. It was a lovely May morning. 1973. Underdogs Sunderland had just won the FA Cup. We mixed the two ingredients in our kitchen, tasted the result and it was certainly intriguing, but in reality bloody awful. Undaunted, we threw in some sugar and it got better, but it still missed something. We went back to the store, searching the shelves for something else, found our salvation in Cadbury’s Powdered Drinking Chocolate and added it to our formula. Hugh and I were taken by surprise. It tasted really good. Not only this, but the cream seemed to have the effect of making the drink taste stronger, like full-strength spirit. It was extraordinary.'

To make the drink, Box Kite baristas simply load a glass with ice, fill it about three quarters of the way with chilled tonic, and then top it off with an espresso shot — typically from roasters like Madcap (MI) and Ritual (SF). Often, baristas pull the espresso shot directly on top of the tonic and ice mixture, forgoing the process of first pulling it into a cup and then pouring the espresso from cup to glass.

Letters and Liquor illustrates the history of lettering associated with cocktails. From the 1690s to the 1990s, I’ve selected 52 of the most important drinks in the cocktail canon and rendered their names in period-inspired design. I post a new drink each week with history, photos and recipes. Don’t want to miss a single cocktail? Click here for email updates.

The Really Good Pickle Martini

2 oz Gordon’s London dry gin;
1/4 oz Martini & Rossi extra dry vermouth;
1/4 oz pickle juice;
Garnish: Skewered dill pickle slice;
Glass: Cocktail

Pour all the ingredients into a mixing glass with ice, and stir briskly with a bar spoon for about 1 minute.

Strain into a chilled Martini glass.

Garnish with a skewered dill pickle slice.

2 oz blanco tequila
12 to 15 blueberries, plus a few more for garnish
2 basil sprigs
1 oz agave nectar
Juice of 1 lime

Muddle the blueberries and basil with the tequila in a shaker.
Add the agave nectar and lime juice, and shake with ice.
Pour into a rocks glass over fresh ice, and top with filtered water if desired.
Garnish with a few blueberries.

This puckery drink is prepared with rum and fresh mint like a classic mojito, but New Orleans chef John Besh makes it holiday-worthy by topping it with a splash of Champagne.

"A Neapolitan-American friend of mine, who's in his mid-fifties, fondly remembers how his mother used to serve him an espresso with Fernet Branca and an egg yolk every morning before he went off to elementary school."

Circa 1800, the Cocktail was a “hair of the dog” morning drink that tamed spirits with water, sugar and bitters (patent medicine). The late 19th Century expanded the use of the word “cocktail” to encompass just about any mixed drink. Since then, the Old Fashioned—literally, the old-fashioned way of making a cocktail—has been our contemporary expression of the original drink.

During the 20th Century, various bad ideas encrusted the Old Fashioned. Here we will strip off those barnacles to expose the amazingly simple and sublime drink beneath.