The Elevated Bear

08/12/2026

Your cocktail program has high standards. Your NA program should too.

“We have three mocktails” is not a non-alcoholic program.

Elevated Bear works with hospitality venues that take cocktails seriously but know their NA offering is not yet meeting the same standard. We identify why drinks fall short. Then provide a tasting-verified diagnosis of what needs to change.

The work starts with the NA Program Audit: a guided, on-site or remote evaluation of your current NA menu, built around the experience your guests actually have in the glass.

If your venue is ready to treat non-alcoholic drinks as part of hospitality, not an afterthought.

Book an 18-minute NA Program Discovery Call using the button at the top of this Page.

06/30/2026

Earlier this month, I launched a new video podcast called QueerAFAF.

It combines two things I'm passionate about.

My LGBTQ+ Community and the ANA (Adult Non-Alcoholic) Beverage space.

If you're a beverage manager or a venue owner and your ANA drinks aren't generating profit, let's have a discovery call together.

I've aired 3 episodes. The most recent featuring Laura Silverman from Zero Proof Nation.

The link to the full episode is in the first comment.

06/23/2026

With Nerd Nite - Austin – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

Come hear me speak this Thursday at Barrel O’ Fun on Thursday at 7:30!

Either live or on Twitch for . . .

Nerd Nite Austin #183: The Measure of an Elevated Nerd

“You Can’t Taste Anything” by Scot Maitland

Most people believe taste happens on the tongue. It doesn’t. About 80% of what we call flavor is actually scent, processed retronasally on the exhale, and your brain assembles the whole experience in real time. We’ll explore the neuroscience of flavor perception, why your garnish has a job to do, and you’ll verify the mechanism yourself in about ten seconds using whatever’s already in your glass.

06/11/2026

Last week, I sat down with Coulton Vento, co-owner of Mockingbird in New York.

What part of the work actually makes the whole thing worth it?

Full interview in the first comment.

04/24/2026

Join me next Tuesday for Specialty Day: Explore Food and Bev Careers with Good Work Austin!

I'll be teaching about Elevated Non-Alcoholic Beverages, and we'll be making The Soft Light!

04/16/2026

New YouTube Video from The Elevated Bear!
Link in the first comment below.
Watch!
Like!
Comment!

04/06/2026

I still didn’t know what I was looking for until I found an unassuming book called Cocktail Theory by Dr. Kevin Peterson. And that’s when it clicked. I didn’t need internet recipes. I didn’t need cocktail history. I needed science. Full video on YouTube—link in bio!

04/04/2026

And that orange twist isn’t pretty, it’s functional. It completes the three-register aromatic architecture with citrus top notes, spice middle notes, and honey base notes. Full video on YouTube—link in bio!

04/03/2026