10 Trendsetting Mixologists

In various editions of the Beverage Network’s magazines, I have the cover story on 10 Trendsetting Mixologists from across the country. I interviewed my picks at the Navan/Grand Marnier Mixology Summit this spring.

This year’s batch of bartenders to watch have more in common than a penchant for inventing and shaking up tasty cocktails. They’re using fresh and often local ingredients, adding savory herbs to drinks, and making sure the execution of each cocktail is consistently stellar.

These standout mixologists, some with impressive training under their belt, some the winners of national and international cocktail challenges, are also quite influential, both introducing quality cocktails to the underserved areas of the country, as well as impressing jaded vacationers in Vegas and Aspen. They impact the community through bartenders’ guilds, banding together to influence the purchases of control state boards, and educating the public with classes and seminars. These men and women help elevate both the craft of mixology and the consumer palate simultaneously. Let’s raise a glass to the class of 2008.

The mixologists chosen were:

Charles Joly from Chicago
Patricia Richards from Las Vegas
Matt Martinez from Los Angeles
Jeremy Strungis from New Jersey
Ted Kilgore from St. Louis
Gina Chersevani from Washington, DC
Lance Mayhew from Portland, OR
Denis Cote from Aspen, CO
Eric Simpkins from Atlanta
Jon Santer from San Francisco

Read interviews with these ten terrific bartenders here.

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Comments

2 responses to “10 Trendsetting Mixologists”

  1.  Marshall Avatar
     Marshall

    Glad to see a DC area mixologist getting some recognition! With Justin, Sebastian and Todd in the Food & Wine 2008 Cocktail book, DC is definitely on the rise as a cocktail city.

    Camper – I linked to your article/blog on my congrats to Gina. https://community.livejournal.com/scofflaws_den/39077.html

    Cheers,
    Marshall

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