Dr. Adam Elmegirab's

Bartender and cocktail historian Adam Elmegirab started his line of cocktail bitters in 2009 by reviving a 19th-century bitters brand lost to Prohibition.

About Dr. Adam Elmegirab's

Based in
United Kingdom
Founded
2009
Known for
revived 19th-century cocktail bitters, starting with Boker's

Adam Elmegirab worked behind the bar before turning to drinks consulting and cocktail history. His bitters line began in 2009 with a remake of Boker's Bitters, created by Johann Gottlieb Böker in 1828 and named in the 1887 edition of Jerry Thomas's bartender's guide. The original company closed during Prohibition, and no one knew its recipe.

Elmegirab, a former bartender from Scotland, based his Boker's on old records and an intact original bottle he had found.

Dr. Adam Elmegirab's questions

What are cocktail bitters?

Bitters are a concentrated, alcohol-based flavoring made from herbs, roots, bark, peels and spices. Bartenders add them by the drop or dash, and their bitter, aromatic note balances a cocktail's sweetness and gives it a more complex flavor. Elmegirab, a former bartender from Scotland, revived Boker's Bitters in 2009.

Who was Jerry Thomas?

Jerry Thomas was an American bartender who owned saloons in New York City and is often called the father of American mixology, the craft of making mixed drinks. His 1862 book, How to Mix Drinks, or The Bon-Vivant's Companion, was the first recipe book for mixed drinks published in the United States and wrote down recipes that had been passed along mostly by word of mouth. Its recipes call for "Bogart's bitters," most likely a misprint for Boker's Bitters, the brand Elmegirab revived, and the 1887 edition names Boker's.

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