Anthony Baker — RyeCentral Lab Mixologist
Anthony Baker
New York City, New York
Twenty-five years behind the stick and the professor of Home Mix-O-Nomics — Professor Baker to his guests and students, building every cocktail around the person holding the glass.
Available for
Anthony's Approach Behind the Stick
Twenty-five years in, Anthony works from one anchor point: the person on the other end of the cocktail is what matters. If you don't fully understand what a guest wants before you serve them, he says, you'll most likely hand them a mediocre drink — and that's not what he wants for them. He wants them to have an adventure while sipping it. So he does two things: asks as many questions as he can about their taste preferences, and knows cocktails deeply enough to curate the perfect experience. The guest feels seen, heard, and understood — and with every sip they trust him a little more.
His toolkit runs the full range — shaken, stirred, fat-washed, batched, low-ABV, and infused — and the same curiosity powers his cocktail classes, where he reads palates well enough to convert people to spirits they'd never considered… such as rye whiskey.
How Anthony Found Rye
Anthony had always heard of rye here and there, but he didn't really know what it was until 2018, when he worked at The Aviary as Drinks Tournant — a position that had him tasting spirits half the day. That's where he discovered the taste differences between whiskeys. His first impression of rye? "Very spicy."
These days the rotation is settled. Angel's Envy Rye is the go-to — finished in Caribbean rum casks, picking up hints of molasses and baking spices that he calls perfect for a tropical-style old-fashioned. Behind the bar he stirs with Woodinville Rye and shakes with Old Forester, and his go-to classic is the Old-Fashioned.
Anthony's Signature: The Tropical Old-Fashioned
Angel's Envy Rye meets banana, pineapple and coconut — the classic gone island-side
Ingredients
- 2.25 oz Angel's Envy Rye
- 0.25 oz gum syrup
- 5 dashes banana bitters
- 7 drops pineapple extract
- 3 drops coconut extract
Method (Anthony's words)
"Add all ingredients into a double rocks glass. Add a large ice cube and stir 10 seconds. Garnish with a dried pineapple slice."
RyeCentral Lab Tested
Anthony’s Lab-Tested Cocktails
Lab-tested builds that match how Anthony works — the classic he reaches for first, and a twist in the spirit of his Tropical Old-Fashioned. Click either to read the full guide.
Rye Old Fashioned
Smoked Old Fashioned
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Free membership unlocks My Rye Profile for personalized recommendations, free home whiskey tasting events, and a $10 welcome coupon for barware, glassware, clothing & home goods. Your join also counts toward Anthony unlocking his signature cocktail page in the Cocktail Station — 50 signups needed.
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Available for
Bookings · Collaborations · Consulting
Get in Touch with Anthony
Booking a corporate event, a mixology class, or a brand collaboration? Drop Anthony a note, or find him on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Home Mix-O-Nomics on YouTube.
Email lands in Anthony's inbox directly. Allow a day or two for a reply.
In Anthony's Words
Q. What makes a good cocktail?
The love you put into it. Love for the craft, love for the cocktail, and love for the person drinking it.
Q. Why do you do what you do?
I love connecting with people. Cocktails help me do that.
Q. Where do we find you when you're not behind the bar?
At home, or on a boat fishing. I'm a fisherman at heart — I like to go out on the boat, sail it to Connecticut, and fish for hours.
Q. Who originally inspired you to start creating cocktail recipes?
Gaz Regan of Regan's Bitters #6.
Community Reviews
Worked with Anthony? Tell us how it went.
Booked Anthony for a corporate event, taken one of his mixology classes, or built his Tropical Old-Fashioned at home? Leave a rating and review — verified RyeCentral Lab entries are tagged.
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What Anthony Brings Behind the Stick
- Twenty-five years behind the bar, including Drinks Tournant at The Aviary
- Guest first — asks the questions, reads the palate, then builds the drink
- Techniques in regular rotation — shaken, stirred, fat-washed, batched, low-ABV, and infused
- Angel's Envy Rye as the go-to pour; Woodinville for stirred work, Old Forester for shaken
- The Old-Fashioned as the classic he keeps coming back to
- A teacher's instinct — converts palates to new spirits through his cocktail classes
Anthony's Mission Behind the Bar
Anthony's mission is the simplest one in mixology and also the hardest to do consistently: make every sip an adventure for the person holding the glass. That means asking before pouring, understanding the palate in front of him, and curating an experience the guest feels was built for them — because it was.
Here's to your and Anthony's next Rye discovery! 🍾
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Profile compiled from Anthony's application · RyeCentral Lab Mixologists Program
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