The word cocktail first appears in print in 1806 in a newspaper in Hudson valley New York. It defines a cocktail as a mix of spirits, sugar, bitters and water. By the end of the 19th century the art form had reached maturity and fine bartenders across America were making fantastic creations. This period is often referred to as the golden age of cocktails. This was an era of opulence, art & culture rising into the 20th century.

During that time cocktails & cocktail bars became the preferred meeting place of artists, thinkers & contemporaries. Frankly the period was so wild, it literally led to the prohibition of alcohol.

So here at the Golden Age, we want to focus on the time before bartenders and cocktail enthusiasts were forced into the backrooms, speakeasies and foreign countries to imbibe in peace - as well as present to you the origins of the classic cocktails many of us still enjoy today.