The Cocktail App, a mixology recipe collection for iPhone and iPod Touch, is based upon a “famous” poster by one of its developers, Konstantin Datz. Although Mr. Datz’s artwork is nicely designed, it’s not really accurate to portray the work as famous — the first record of Datz’s poster I could find was from last spring and from what I gleaned it’s simply a takeoff of the “Engineer’s Guide to Drinks” print, believed to have first appeared in the 1980s.
Moving beyond the description’s questionable accuracy, the app offers 38 recipes — certainly a small number for $2. What you’re paying for in this app is its UI, and although it’s well-done, that’s just not enough when content is lacking. I did like that The Cocktail App offers origin information for each drink in its library as well as education on each liquor or mixer involved in the recipe, but I wish, considering the app’s inspiration, that users could zoom in on the drink art to grasp its true beauty.
Users can add drinks to a favorites list or search the app based on ingredient, but I found the results to be less than successful considering how many ingredients most of these recipes take. The recipes themselves are easy to follow, but don’t rely on the equipment icon. The blender icon is displayed whether you need to stir something by hand or actually grind up some ice — so don’t think you need to lug out your Cuisinart to make that screwdriver. Prep for a mint julep shows the blender, too, only the pestle icon would make much more sense (step No. 2 reads “Pestle well").
The Cocktail App is pretty, but its numerous errors and minimal recipes don’t equal a need to download this app. There are cheaper, most robust apps available, and once you’re hammered you won’t care how pretty they are. Save your pennies, and by the poster instead.
