"Spirited Women" with Sammi Katz and Olivia McGiff
Featuring an Interview, Cocktail Recipes, and a Book Giveaway
Spirited Women
I’m pleased as punch to welcome Sammi Katz and Olivia McGiff back to LAST CALL to help celebrate the publication of their new book, Spirited Women: Makers, Shakers, and Trailblazers in the World of Cocktails, out today from Union Square & Co. Sammi—a writer, cocktail creator, and consultant—and Olivia—an illustrator and designer—had a mini one-week LAST CALL residency in February 2023 to celebrate the release of their vibrant debut book, Cocktails in Color: A Spirited Guide to the Art and Joy of Drinkmaking, that featured a spirited interview as well as an annotated, pop-music-soaked playlist on Dive Bar Jukebox.
With Spirited Women, Sammi and Olivia salute 55 groundbreaking women from around the globe, sharing their fascinating stories through profiles, dynamic paintings and illustrations, and 45 original cocktail recipes. You’ll discover talented “Makers” like Dr. Joy Spence (Master Blender, Appleton Estate), Lesley Gracie (Master Distiller, Hendrick’s Gin), and Karen Hoskin (Founder, Montanya Distillers); innovate “Shakers” such as Lynnette Marrero (Bartender, Educator, and Co-Founder of Speed Rack), Tiffanie Barriere (Bartender, Spirits Educator, and Cocktail Consultant), and Julia Momosé (Bartender, Bar Owner, and Author); and pioneering “Trailblazers,” including Yola Jimenez (Founder, Yola Mezcal), Carolyn Kim (Founder and Owner, Yobu Soju), and Stephanie Jordan (Co-Founder, Avallen Calvados). The illuminating stories of these accomplished women in the spirits industry will have you raising a glass to celebrate their many achievements.
Read on for my interview with Sammi and Olivia to learn more more about the process behind creating the book, stir up two refreshing cocktails from the book, learn where you can meet the authors in person on their book tour, and enter for your chance to receive a complimentary copy of Spirited Women.
Catch Sammi and Olivia on the Spirited Women Book Tour
BROOKLYN, NY
Tuesday, March 4 (6PM-9PM): Grand Army (RSVP) (I’ll see you there!)
Wednesday, March 5 (7PM): Books Are Magic (Montague Street store), In Conversation with Amanda Schuster (Tickets)
Tuesday, March 11 (7PM-9:15PM): Tables of Contents (Tickets)
Wednesday, March 12 (6PM-9PM): Winona’s, Pop-Up Cocktail Party with Shannon Mustipher (RSVP)
PORTLAND, OR
Friday, March 14 (4PM-6PM): The Sports Bra (RSVP)
Saturday, March 15 (2PM-4PM): Enoteca Nostrana (Tickets)
Sunday, March 16 (6PM-8PM): Vivienne Culinary Books, In Conversation with Emily Mistell (Tickets)
CHICAGO, IL
Tuesday, March 18 (7PM-8PM): Madison Street Books, In Conversation with Julia Momose (RSVP)
Wednesday, March 19 (6PM-8PM): Nobody’s Darling (Details)
LONG BEACH, CA
Saturday, March 31 (6:30PM-8:30PM): The Wicked Wolf (Details)
Spirited Women Book Giveaway!
In honor of Women’s History Month, LAST CALL is hosting a giveaway for your chance to win a complimentary copy of Spirited Women. To enter, simply “like” this dispatch and leave a comment sharing the favorite “spirited woman” in your life. It could be a bartender, sommelier, distiller, brewer, wine maker, drinks writer, or even your wife, girlfriend, partner, daughter, auntie, or bestie.
One comment will be randomly selected and the winning entry will be announced on Friday, March 7. Note that the free book offer can only be mailed within the contiguous United States.
Talking Spirited Women with Sammi Katz and Olivia McGiff
How did the inspiration for Spirited Women come about?
Sammi: With our first book, Cocktails In Color, we were really fortunate to have signed a two-book deal with the publisher. When we were batting around ideas for what we wanted to do, we kept coming back to the idea of women in spirits. Unfortunately, we’re still living in a world that undervalues women and women’s achievements, in every field really, but it’s prevalent in spirits and alcohol. The truth is that there are so many amazing women all around the world making waves in and shaking up the industry, so we wanted to write a book that celebrates some of these badass ladies by telling their stories through profiles, illustrations, and of course, cocktails.
After working on Cocktails & Color, we knew how long and arduous it can be to create a book: the writing, the illustrating, the promotion and marketing, so we knew we were gonna have to do something that we were super passionate about. Also, somewhat selfishly, we knew that working on a project like this would give us the opportunity to meet so many incredible women around the world, learn about their products and communities, and start to connect the dots about what this network of female empowerment and celebration can look like in the industry. And that, quite frankly, was impossible to pass up! So we decided to pitch the idea of Spirited Women, and thankfully, our publisher accepted it!
Did your style of collaborative approach change in any way between Cocktails in Color and Spirited Women?
Sammi: As with Cocktails In Color, we really worked side-by-side for much of the creative process. Typically, an author writes the manuscript then hands it off to the illustrator. Not the case with us! We collaborate on all parts of the project from beginning to end. We kept up our weekly Sunday R&D ritual, where we would test out cocktails together and share the work each of us had done that week. Because we conducted over 50 interviews and Olivia has a full time job, there were some interviews she couldn’t be present for, but she would watch the recording after to get a sense of the interviewee. And because we basically gave ourselves double the amount of work on this book, we spent more time working solo—me writing and Olivia painting—than we did on the last one.
What was the process like identifying the women you selected to spotlight and share their stories?