I'll be heading down to Tales a day early for a photo with a style similar to this one.
One thing I want to point out that has shaped this whole "Mixology" experience for me is what motivated me to get here....well, here's the story.
My first bartending job began in spring of 2001 at Outback Steakhouse. Yes, Outback. Now, not known for their free wheeling mixoligists, it was still a start for me in getting to know what it feels like to work the flow of a bar. And 10 years ago, in suburban Portland, Outback was really one of the nicest restaurants you could go to. I loved working their and did so for nearly 5 years. They treated me very well, and I would never say anything bad about that organization. They took care of their people, and really empowered their young employees to really drive the business. I made friends for life there.
Jason Bender (now one of my best friends and he stood up with me at my wedding) was the name of my manager there at Outback. We were the same age, but he had four more years of experience at Outback, so he was my immediate supervisor, and moved me into the bar after 2 years of service as a waiter. Well, after being trained in, my first solo shift was a relatively slow one. I think it was a Sunday, and it didn't generate a lot of bar business. So, I started "Playing".
My very first concoction that I ever created was inspired by the Australian theme. I took some Myers's Rum, Bols Creme de Banana and Creme de Cacao (for some reason there were 12 bottles of "creme de anything" in one of the speed wells) and blended it with some heavy sweet cream and ice. Served it in a frozen mug with chocolate drizzled down the side and called it a "Tasmanian Monkey Tail". I offered it up for the service staff to drink, and get feed back from. Well, it really did taste like a frozen "Monkey Tale", you know, those frozen bananas dipped in chocolate that you can get from the "incredible monkey boy" at the circus or carnival. I thought it was delicious. I wave, my friend and the MOD, Jason over and he takes one look at it, tastes it, and says, "It's great, but your not an alchemist back there, just make the drinks on the menu." 
"Huh"...I think to myself..."I'm not an alchemist". But what about new drinks? What happens when you mix this with that? How does this taste? I secretly became Sid the Science Kid behind the bar...and thus my natural curiosity was born. So at this point, I want to thank Jason Bender for proclaiming that I wasn't an Alchemist, and giving me the motivation to be curious for a decade. Thank you Jason and thank you to the countless others that have been so generous with their experience and knowledge. This honor is for you too!!!
