World's Best Mixologists Of November 2022
The World's Best Mixologists of November 2022 have been announced! This prestigious award goes to mixologists who have demonstrated excellence in mixing drinks. These talented professionals create unique cocktails that are delicious and visually stunning.
Here’s our roundup for October, incased you missed it. Follow our Instagram account @advancedmixolgy for more skilled individuals in bartending and bar tricks. Or sign up for our free VIP club and avail of the exclusive rebate program.
1. Simon Ford
Simon Ford @simonfordsgin is the co-founder of The 86 Co. and Ford's Gin, a brand of artisan gin that has become one of the market's best-selling products.
He has been a significant voice in the spirits and cocktails sector, holding educational sessions, judging bartending competitions, and speaking on panels at international conferences.
Ford has worked in the beverage industry for almost two decades. Before founding The 86 Co., he was an award-winning brand ambassador for Plymouth Gin, Pernod Ricard's director of trade marketing and brand education, bartender, brand educator, and writer.
He received numerous recognitions, including the Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Award for Best US Brand Ambassador in 2009 and Best International Brand Ambassador in 2007.
2. John DeBary
John DeBary @jnd3001 began his bartending career at the famed New York City speakeasy "Please Don't Tell." In early 2008, the award-winning cocktail bar was just a stylish restaurant-industry hangout that DeBary's friend helped build.
DeBary's newfound flair for drinks led to a nine-year career as bar director for the Momofuku restaurant chain. And he shared his time between the two jobs for nearly four years.
DeBary has expanded his skills beyond the bar with Proteau, a nonalcoholic botanical aperitif designed to be consumed straight from the bottle. He co-founded the Restaurant Workers' Community Foundation, a major crisis relief group during the pandemic.
On top of that, he wrote the cocktail book Drink What You Want: The Subjective Guide to Making Objectively Delicious Cocktails and continues to write about drinks for magazines such as Food52 and Punch.
3. Jeff Bell
Being the Head Bartender of PDT and Spirited Awards Best American Bartender winner at Tales of the Cocktail 2017 sounds like a lot of responsibility. But Jeff Bell @jeffreymbell is one of the industry’s coolest players.
Bell relocated to New York City after bartending throughout college, where famed PDT creator Jim Meehan spotted his talent and gave him an offer he couldn't refuse for a barback position. He was promoted to bartender and helped PDT win a James Beard award for "Outstanding Bar Program" in 2012.
He was recognized as a 2013 StarChefs Rising Star Bartender and placed first in the United States and second in the Global DIAGEO World Class Bartender Competition 2013.
4. Al Culliton
Al @al_culliton is a writer, historian, and cocktail connoisseur based in western Massachusetts' hilltowns. Their work focuses on American cocktails, food, and culture from the age of punch through the 1960s and 20th centuries.
Al was the resident bartender for Basically from 2019 to 2020, and their history column is featured in Happy Hour with Al. They also contributed to PUNCH, Saveur, and The Boston Globe.
Al also studied history and art history at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, focusing on medieval Europe. As part of their studies, they spent their junior year studying in Canterbury, England.
Since then, you may have seen them pouring you espresso, catering events, or serving your lunch at a bar. Al has been a general manager at Red Hook (Brooklyn) bar and restaurant Fort Defiance.
5. Brother Cleve
Boston has a hipper godfather than any other cocktail community in the United States. Brother Cleve @brothercleve, a.k.a. Robert Toomey, stumbled into mixology by sampling beverages from out-of-date drink menus at diners, restaurants, and bars while touring the country with bands like The Del Fuegos and Combustible Edison.
Toomey knew more about cocktails and cocktail history by the 1990s than most bartenders. He put that knowledge to use at the B-Side Longue. This Cambridge bar was instrumental in launching the craft cocktail movement in Boston and as a mentor to prominent Boston bar figures like Jackson Cannon and Misty Kalkofen.
Cocktails and music were one of Brother Cleve’s specialties. He used to mix daiquiris in a Boston bar with Cuban jazz and 1970s cocktails with disco music the next. Toomey visited Los Angeles in early September 2022 to perform at a tiki-themed bartending event and died of a heart attack at 67.
6. St. John Frizell
St. John Frizell @stjohnfrizell is a bartender and the owner of Fort Defiance, a widely praised cafe bar in Red Hook, Brooklyn.
Frizell left his job as Bon Appétit magazine's promotion copy director in 2005 to follow in the footsteps of Charles H. Baker, Jr., the great early 20th food writer, and adventurer. When he returned to New York, he trained with Audrey Saunders at her world-renowned cocktail bar Pegu Club.
His food, travel, and cocktail writing have appeared in various publications, including Bon Appétit, Gourmet.com, Saveur, Fine Cooking, Islands, Time Out New York, Oxford American, Edible Brooklyn, and Edible Manhattan, among others. He also contributes a weekly drink column to Men's Journal.
7. Gina Chersevani
Gina Chersevani @mixtressdc is inventing a professional field out of her passion for mixology and securing DC's mobile liquor license for the 1967 Airstream bar.
Since 2012, she’s been running Buffalo & Bergen cocktail bar and Suburbia, a drinks truck at Union Market. Her summer drinks are typically low in alcohol and refreshing, so you can enjoy a few without becoming overly intoxicated in the heat.
She recently won an Absolut vodka martini contest with a cookie garnish. The Washingtonian's Best of Washington issue featured her drink with frozen cubes of Tuscan sangria.
Chersevani enjoys sharing her knowledge with others, and she remains an industry leader and educator in using local and organic farm fresh ingredients.
8. Micah Olson
Micah Olson @micahmixing is the co-owner and mixologist of Bar Crudo and Okra Cookhouse & Cocktails. His signature drinks are the best-sellers at both establishments.
Olson created the Old Walrus lounge’s cocktail menu, which features simple mixed drinks with only a few ingredients to allow the spirits to shine.
The bar menu is separated by the distillery's spirits: vodka, gin, tequila, and whiskey. Many of the drinks are classics with a handful of originals.
The Old Walrus lounge is trying to become a neighborhood hangout and, eventually, a destination for imbibers across the Valley.
9. Jason Asher
Jason Asher - Image by Sched
Jason Asher @asher52, a Scottsdale native, began his career in the restaurant industry while still in high school and college.
In 2001, he moved to San Francisco to attend and graduate from the California Culinary Academy. And in 2007, he began working as a bartender at the Sanctuary Resort on Camelback Mountain.
Asher was named the prestigious GQ Bombay Sapphire's "Most Inspired Bartender" nationally in 2010. His hospitality experience ranges from cooking in kitchens to nightclubs, resorts, and craft cocktail bars, assisting with national account beverage programs, and private events management. He also mentors other bartenders within the local Arizona mixology community.
Asher was featured in Esquire, Imbibe, Tasting Panel, Food & Wine, GQ, and Saveur. In April 2013, he was named one of the "Top 100 Culinary Trendsetters" by the Scottsdale Culinary Festival.
He is currently the Director of Mixology & Craft Spirits for Young's Market Arizona and Director of Beverage Development for Counter Intuitive, a Scottsdale cocktail bar.
10. Bobby Heugel
Since opening Anvil Bar & Refuge in Houston, Bobby Heugel @bobby_heugel has changed the restaurant and bar culture in the city. His dedication to training, quality spirits, and hospitality at Anvil has set the industry standard in Texas, earning the bar eight James Beard Award nominations.
Before selling his shares in late 2016, he was a founding partner in the craft beer bar Hay Merchant and the James Beard Award-winning restaurant Underbelly and Blacksmith.
Heugel has been named in Forbes' 30 Under 30 list and continues to be a strong voice in the cocktail community. He is also a consultant for restaurants, bars, and liquor brands and is working on creating an app for bar management.
Conclusion
In no particular order, these talented bartenders have impressed us with their skills behind the bar and pushed boundaries in terms of flavor combinations and presentation.
So, if you're looking for inspiration for your next cocktail party or want to learn more about some of the best drinks, check out these amazing mixologists!
If you know someone who has what it takes to be included in our monthly roundup, email us at info@advancedmixology.com. One of our marketing specialists will contact you and send you the details.
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