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Feb 2025
30m 35s

Ada Coleman and the Savoy’s American Bar

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About this episode

Ada Coleman was head bartender at the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel in London in the early 20th century. She created a cocktail that is still served today, and she's an enduring icon of the bartending industry. 

Research:

  • The Ada Coleman Project. https://theadacolemanproject.com/about/
  • Allison, Keith. “Spies at the Savoy Part One.” Alcohol Professor. Oct. 5, 2016. https://www.alcoholprofessor.com/blog-posts/blog/2016/10/05/spies-at-the-savoy-part-one
  • Allison, Keith. “Spies at the Savoy Part Three.” Alcohol Professor. October 14, 2016. https://www.alcoholprofessor.com/blog-posts/blog/2016/10/14/spies-at-the-savoy-part-three
  • “American Bar.” Savoy London. https://www.thesavoylondon.com/restaurant/american-bar/#:~:text=The%20American%20Bar%20first%20opened,World's%2050%20Best%20Bars%202017.
  • Bell, Emily. “Ada Coleman: One Of History’s Most Famous Female Mixologists.” Vinepair. March 17, 2016. https://vinepair.com/wine-blog/ada-coleman/
  • Bryant, Miranda. “Savoy’s American Bar appoints first woman as head bartender in 95 years.” Aug. 6, 2021. https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/aug/06/savoy-american-bar-appoints-first-woman-as-head-bartender-in-95-years
  • Haigh, Ted. “Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails: From the Alamagoozlum to the Zombie 100 Rediscovered Recipes and the Stories Behind Them.” Quarry Books. 2009.
  • Hotel and Restaurant Employee's International Alliance and Bartenders' International League of America. “The Mixer and Server.” Volume 35. 1926. Accessed online: https://books.google.com/books?id=OcyfAAAAMAAJ&vq=adah+coleman&source=gbs_navlinks_s
  • O’Meara, Mallory. “Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol.“ Hanover Square Press. 2021.
  • “Rupert D’Oyly Carte Dies in London at 71.” The Gazette. Sept. 13, 1948. https://www.newspapers.com/image/421220764/?clipping_id=50107862&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjQyMTIyMDc2NCwiaWF0IjoxNzM3NDAwMDEwLCJleHAiOjE3Mzc0ODY0MTB9.mS2TE4P7Mv_3uB3wevRSJpZDPZYy2a-e7eyG-Hk10Ds
  • Saunders, Minott. “Famous Bar Maids Who Worked at Same Bar Twenty Years Without Speaking , Retire.” The Aspen Daily Times. February 16, 1926. https://www.coloradohistoricnewspapers.org/?a=d&d=ADT19260216.2.2&e=-------en-20--1--img-txIN%7ctxCO%7ctxTA--------0------
  • Styn, Rebecca. “Toast to Ada Coleman, National Women’s History Month.” Chilled. https://chilledmagazine.com/toast-to-ada-coleman-national-womens-history-month/
  • Sutcliffe, Theodora. “Ada Coleman.” Difford’s Guide. https://www.diffordsguide.com/encyclopedia/2857/people/ada-coleman
  • “Women as Barmaids: Published for the Joint Committee on the Employment of Barmaids.” King Publishing. London. 1905. https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=B-VNAQAAMAAJ&rdid=book-B-VNAQAAMAAJ&rdot=1

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