Apéritif: Cocktail Hour the French Way

JAMES BEARD AWARD FINALIST • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY FOOD NETWORK

Grab a light drink and a bite, and enjoy cocktail hour, the French way.

For the French, the fleeting interlude between a long workday and the evening meal to come is not meant to be hectic or crazed. Instead, that time is a much needed chance to pause, take a breath, and reset with light drinks and snacks. Whether it's a quick affair before dashing out the door to your favorite Parisian bistro or a lead-up to a more lavish party, Apéritif is about kicking off the night, rousing the appetite, and doing so with the carefree spirit of connection and conviviality. Apéritif celebrates that easygoing lifestyle with simple yet stylish recipes for both classic and modern French apéritif-style cocktails, along with French-inspired bites and hors d'oeuvres.

Keeping true to the apéritif tradition, you'll find cocktail recipes that use lighter, low-alcohol spirits, fortified wines, and bitter liqueurs. The impressive drinks have influences from both Old World and New, but are always low fuss and served barely embellished—an easy feat to pull off for the relaxed host at home.

Apéritif also offers recipes for equally breezy bites, such as Radishes with Poppy Butter, Gougères, Ratatouille Dip, and Buckwheat-Sel Gris Crackers. For evenings that are all about ease and approachability without sacrificing style or flavor, Apéritif makes drinking and entertaining at home as effortless, fun, and effervescent as the offerings themselves

Praise for Apéritif

“With a dram of humor, Ms. Peppler provides a primer with the history and uses of various apéritifs.”—The New York Times, “19 Best Cookbooks of Fall 2018”

“With witty and honest prose and stunning photography, this book is one to keep out on the coffee table (or bar cart).”—Food & Wine, “Best Cocktail Books of Fall 2018”

“Step aside, Italian aperitivo. This book moves over into the equally stylish and luxurious territory of the French cocktail hour, providing recipes for classic and contemporary before-dinner French cocktails, along with light bites.”—Epicurious