When did you first become interested in mixology?
I first became interested in mixology— beyond the teenage tippler's sloshing of rum into a half-empty can of Coke— during a trip some years ago to Italy. My then girlfriend-now-wife Gail and I happened into the absurdly beautiful lobby bar of the Grand Hotel in Florence. We asked the bartender to suggest a drink, and he suggested a Negroni. At the first sip, we were hooked. Pleasingly bitter and sweet and tart all at the same time, the Negroni was a revelation. For months after we returned home, these were pretty well the official house cocktail. Of course, this was the only grownup drink I knew how to make. That would soon change as I began to seek out recipes new and old, and fresher, better-tasting ingredients for cocktails. Eventually, I connected with West Coast mixologists who were among the first to emphasize organic fruits, vegetables, and even spirits in their cocktails. As soon as I tasted these cutting-edge drinks, I was hooked all over again.

If you don't order a cocktail at a restaurant or bar, which beverage do you choose?
Wine or beer. Oh, and occasionally water.

What's your least favorite drink?
Anything super-sweet, which tends to mean most drinks with a "tini" suffix.

What's your best mixology/drinking memory? What was the occasion?
Probably the first Negroni I had (see answer to question 1). Of course, the best cocktail experience is often the one I most recently had, depending as much on the mixture in the glass as the folks I'm drinking with.

How did you become interested in the organic cocktail movement?
My interest in the organic cocktail movement was in many ways an extension of my interest in organic foods. As organic and farm-fresh foods began to really take off some years ago, I noticed a curious disconnect at restaurants. Here you'd sit, enjoying a delicious meal of fresh, in-season foods, yet in the cocktail glass you'd be served the same pre-fab cocktail mix with Day-Glo cherry made from ingredients found only in a test tube. I wondered why people didn't care as much about what's in your glass as what's on your plate. Luckily, I began to run into mixologists— especially out on the West Coast, such as Scott Beattie and H. Joseph Ehrmann— who were already leading the charge to bring the kitchen into the bar. I began reaching out to them (read: pestering them), asking how they did what they did, etc. Soon it was a minor obsession.

What are your thoughts on recent trends within the industry?
I'm amazed at how much the whole cocktail renaissance has grown beyond a handful of cocktail geeks. I can walk into any halfway hip restaurant and the menu I'm handed will likely describe mouthwatering concoctions that use fresh herbs, organic fruit, and other top-notch ingredients. But it's not the regular menu— it's the specialty cocktail menu. And we're talking serious cocktails, not mixed drinks meant to be pounded down during happy hour. Of course, I have to confess that I'm eager to see the whole Gilded Age, handlebar-moustache-sporting bartender-with-arm-garter and faux-speakeasy fad fade away.

What is the first thing someone learning about mixology should know?
That balance of tastes— sweet, sour, base— is the name of the game. The rest is all riffing of those ratios.

What are some of your favorite food and drink pairings?
I have to confess that I don't get pairing cocktails with food. I like wine and beer with food. You really can't beat a nice minerally chardonnay from Burgundy with oysters.

Can you name a few favorite organic ingredients you like to use when mixing cocktails?
I'm really enjoying playing with organic ingredients typically found on plates or soup bowls like rosemary, ginger and carrots. The sweetness and, well, carrotness of an organic carrot is amazing.

What booze should no home be without?
You're asking someone with bottles of "essential" hooch stashed in just about every cabinet of his house. Hm, if I could have only, say, two types of booze, I'd go with gin and bubbly (as in champagne or other sparkling wine). These two even play nicely together in drinks. Come to think of it, how could you live without rum?

Do you have any favorite bartending/mixology gadgets? Are there any new ones on the market? If so, what are they and where can people get them?
Without a doubt, my can't-live-without bar gizmo is my OXO Good Grips Mini Angle Measuring Cup, which allows you to accurately measure ingredients without having to crank your head sideways to see if you've got the right measure. Also, a good old-fashioned hand lemon/lime juicer.

What are your three best tips, tricks or techniques cocktail fans?
1) Don't skimp on the ice, whether in the mixing glass or drinking glass.
2) If you're serving drinks to more than half a dozen folks, batch at least some of your ingredients before the party (even if only juicing enough lemons and/or limes).
3) Maybe most importantly, don't be afraid to deviate from recipes. If you like more or less sour or sweet in a drink, that's the right way to make the drink—for you.