Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Bitters - The story...

In early 2009 I began a project to recreate every drink from Jerry Thomas' 1862 bartender’s guide ‘How to Mix Drinks or the Bon Vivant’s Companion’. Cleverly titled ‘The Jerry Thomas Project’, this blog was set-up to document my findings. The initial intention was to recreate the drinks as close as humanly possible to how they would have been constructed in the 1800s and to compare them to how we would make them today.



The bitters that were continually name-checked in the Professor’s book were Boker’s, a brand created in 1828 by Johann Gottlieb Boker. These were a key ingredient in drinks such as the Japanese Cocktail, Crusta, Martinez and Improved Holland Gin Cocktail. As we all know they’ve been defunct for many a year, with no record of them being produced after Prohibition, so they’ve long gone into the annals of history. After receiving a sample batch in February of 2009 I set about to perfect my own...

Carrying out the most extensive research into the history of Boker's Bitters, which is now being reworked into a readable format and will be released for the wider bartending community, I used my findings and the various formulas from the 1800s that I uncovered as my guide. This research culminated with me being in direct contact with direct descendants of the families who set-up and ran the Boker’s company before it sadly closed due to the ravages of Prohibition. After months of sampling and a lot of frustration I finally got the product I wanted.

After posting a picture of the five bottles I had online, I began to receive dozens of emails a day requesting to purchase a bottle. Initially I was reluctant to do so but after much contemplation I set about compounding a batch of 150 bottles which sold within three days. Realising a gap in the market for reformulated products and also a demand for new bitters, I released my bottling to the wider bartending community with unheralded success under the guise of Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Bitters, a tongue-in-cheek stab at the medicinal qualities bitters were originally alluded to possess.

Following the global acclaim of Boker’s, with them being in demand by bars, bartenders and enthusiasts alike, I started work on another bitters idea that I’d always wanted to perfect, Dandelion & Burdock Bitters. Based on the traditional English beverage that dates back to the 1300s and a particular favourite of mine during my childhood years, these have also received worldwide global success since their release in January 2010 and recently received 5 out of 5 in CLASS magazine.

Since then I have released a further bottling (1131 bottles), Limited Edition Spanish Bitters. Again these were based on a vintage bottling available in the 1800s but have been reformulated to work with modern spirits and libations.



Having always had a keen interest and passion in bitters I have been collecting over the last two years a number of vintage bottlings as well as researching the history of what is a regularly misunderstood and misinterpreted product. I'm committed to increasing the understanding and knowledge of bitters as well as dispelling some of the myths and accepted practices when it comes to bitters. Too often bitters have a single flavour note, are sweet and are in no way bitter at all, which completely misses the point of what bitters are supposed to be.

I have a passion to recreate defunct bitters, to create new bottlings, and as an aside I have been perfecting recipes for other products such as Falernum, Orgeat and Real Cocktail Cherries which I then release to the bar community to give something back to those who have supported my business.

With a deeper understanding of the bitters category and of their impact on drinks culture over the last few centuries, I am now doing my utmost to share my new found knowledge with the wider bartending community. I invite you to join me on this journey...

The range of bitters currently available from Evo-lution under the branding Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Bitters;

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Boker's Bitters Webpage

Rated 4 / 5 in CLASS Magazine




Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s Boker’s Bitters are a recreation of the classic bottling from 1800. Founded by John G. Boker in 1828, Boker's Bitters gained popularity in New York and around the World as the finest bitters of the Golden Age of mixed drinks.

Handcrafted, hand-bottled and hand-labelled, Boker’s Bitters are once again becoming a staple for bars across the World and are once again being used by bartenders to recreate original libations such as the Japanese Cocktail, Martinez, Manhattan, Crusta and Improved Cocktail as well as inspiring a new generation of classic beverages.

Tasting notes: Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s Boker’s Bitters have an abundance of aromatic flavour and intense bitterness with eucalyptus-pine, cardamom, coffee and orange with an intensely long finish with hints of coffee and chocolate.

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Dandelion & Burdock Bitters Webpage

Rated 5 / 5 in CLASS Magazine



Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Dandelion & Burdock Bitters are a new creation that is entirely British and entirely unique. Based on traditional Dandelion & Burdock; a medicinal beverage believed to have been created by St. Thomas Aquinas sometime in the 1300s, this helped inspire him to create a bitters using their flavour profile so they can be used within many modern cocktails and classic drinks. These bitters are now in demand across the globe.

Handcrafted, hand-bottled and hand-labelled, Dandelion & Burdock Bitters are a great addition to any bitters collection to add depth to a Gin & Tonic or in classics such as the Martini, Martinez or Dr. Adam’s Usuki Old Fashioned.

Tasting Notes: Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Dandelion & Burdock Bitters have layers of complex flavour including ginger, anise, lemon, orange, liquorice, clove, honey, muscavado and malt; which combines to give an earthy, bittersweet product backed up by natural sweetness.

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Limited Edition Spanish Bitters Webpage

Rated 4 / 5 in CLASS Magazine



Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Spanish Bitters evoke memories of a style of bitters dating back to the early years of the cock-tail. Based on Spanish Bitters recipes from the 1800s, these bitters have been reformulated to work in harmony with modern spirits and libations and are now in demand across the globe.

Handcrafted, hand-bottled and hand-labelled, Spanish Bitters are a great addition to any bitters collection adding depth to simple beverages such as Tequila & Tonic, a point of difference in a wide range of classic cocktails, or in original libations such as Dr. Adam's Union Flip.

Tasting Notes: Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Spanish Bitters have layers of complex flavour including coriander, violet, raspberry, honey, citrus, pomegranate, toasted orange and predominant chamomile all leading to a long bittersweet finish.

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Aphrodite Bitters Webpage

Rated 4.5 / 5 in CLASS Magazine



Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Aphrodite Bitters take their name from the Greek goddess of sexuality and love. Aphrodisiacs are substances that are alleged to increase sexual desire and like many traditional bitters the botanicals selected for this bottling have been chosen for their alleged medicinal qualities, in this case as an aphrodisiac. The finest chocolate, cocoa nibs, ginger root, red chilli, Arabica coffee and ginseng are compounded to create a complex flavour profile with each botanical playing off and enhancing one another.

Handcrafted, hand-bottled and hand-labelled Aphrodite Bitters are a great addition to any bitters collection adding depth to simple beverages such as the Moscow Mule, a point of difference in a wide range of classic cocktails, or in original libations such as Dr. Adam's Merchant Quarter.

Tasting Notes: Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Aphrodite Bitters have a creamy texture capturing fresh roasted espresso, bitter dark chocolate, roasted hazelnuts, rum & raisin truffles, vanilla and a soft spicy kick throughout leading to a long wood-spiced bitter finish with a soft kick of chilli.

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For purchasing information please contact me directly at adam.elmegirab@evo-lution.org, visit my weblink for a list of current distributors or check Dr. Adam Elmegirab's... on Facebook for known retailers based all around the globe.

Adam Elmegirab
Bar Consultant / Compounder
Evo-lution / Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Bitters

E-mail: adam.elmegirab@evo-lution.org
Web: www.evo-lution.org / www.bokersbitters.co.uk
Facebook: Adam Elmegirab / Evo-lution Bar Consultancy / Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Bitters
Twitter: @AdamsBitters

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Links of interest;

Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Bitters Product Portfolio
Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Botanical Info