Zach Taylor is The Brixton’s main man behind the bar serving as the lead bartender for the last year. Originally from Idaho, Zach headed out to San Francisco six years ago and began pursuing a career bartending. Like most bartenders, he got his start as a bar back at Palomino. Zach’s dedication to learning allowed him to quickly rise the ranks to his role as a bartender for Palomino, where he honed his skills in making classic cocktails. He later moved on to work as the training bartender at Palomino’s sister restaurant in Berkeley, Skates on the Bay. A year and a half afterward, Zach joined Bocanova in Jack London Square, where he learned the more modern culinary side of mixing using fresh fruit ingredients, hand juicing, and preparing homemade syrups.

By the end of 2010 just before The Brixton opened, the owners were looking for bartenders and Zach was an obvious choice. He made the very first Brixton cocktail at the New Years Eve pre-opening party, a Don Julio Silver Margarita. After 10 month, Zach was promoted to lead bartender. Since then he has developed many of The Brixton’s most popular cocktails, including The Brixton Manhattan, a play on the traditional version using Bulleit Bourbon, St. Germain, and Fernet Branca with an orange peel garnish versus the traditional cherry.

Zach appreciates a well crafted drinks at every stage of the process. He believes that the current shift for both consumers and respected restaurants is towards taking a greater focus on craftsmanship. As such, Zach divulges in his astute understanding of the cocktail history and movement in his authored blog Spirit of the Bar, where he discusses trends in the spirit industry and shares his mad-scientist like process of making the purest and freshest cocktails.