Anatomy of a Drink

Est. 2022

Anatomy professor by day.
Cocktail creator & photographer by night.

One cocktail · Every day

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Anatomy of a Drink✦One Cocktail Every Day✦Stirred✦Shaken✦Built✦Est. 2022✦Anatomy of a Drink✦Mezcal✦Calvados✦Rhum Agricole✦Japanese Whisky✦Tequila✦Bourbon✦Sherry✦Anatomy of a Drink✦One Cocktail Every Day✦Stirred✦Shaken✦Built✦Est. 2022✦Anatomy of a Drink✦Mezcal✦Calvados✦Rhum Agricole✦Japanese Whisky✦Tequila✦Bourbon✦Sherry✦

Daniel E. Zajic, Ph.D.

The Creator

Daniel E. Zajic

Ph.D. · Associate Professor of Health, Human Performance & Athletics

One cocktail, every day — where the science of flavor meets the craft of the bar.

Daniel teaches Human Anatomy & Physiology at Linfield University. A first-generation Czech-American and member of the LGBTQ+ community, he shares a new cocktail every day.

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Latest

October 11, 2026

As Islay Dying

By Matt Hunt, Death & Co. Denver (@deathandcompany)

This cocktail was created by Matt Hunt at Death & Co. Denver (@deathandcompany) in 2018. The name is a play on William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, with Islay standing in for the novel’s title. Hunt built it around the simplicity of an equal-parts cocktail, bringing together Islay Scotch and an Islay gin from two very different ends of the flavor spectrum. Laphroaig leads with peat, smoke, and its famously medicinal edge, while The Botanist brings a dense layer of herbs and botanicals. Génépy and absinthe connect the two, resulting in something that drinks like a particularly smoky and herbaceous Martini.

ScotchGinVermouth

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Mezcal✦Calvados✦Rye Whiskey✦Tequila✦Rhum Agricole✦Bourbon✦Japanese Whisky✦Gin✦Scotch✦Rum✦Sherry✦Amaro✦Vermouth✦Cachaça✦Mezcal✦Calvados✦Rye Whiskey✦Tequila✦Rhum Agricole✦Bourbon✦Japanese Whisky✦Gin✦Scotch✦Rum✦Sherry✦Amaro✦Vermouth✦Cachaça✦

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BourbonAperol

Oct 10, 2026Shantelle Pace

Western Oasis

This cocktail was created by Shantelle Pace (@she_thebartender) as a bourbon riff on the Jungle Bird. Bourbon brings vanilla, oak, and baking spice to the familiar combination of bitter orange, pineapple, and lime. Using Aperol in place of the usual Campari gives it a softer bitterness and a brighter citrus character. It is tropical and refreshing, but the bourbon still comes through clearly.

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TequilaCuraçao

Oct 9, 2026Michael Madrusan

Si-Güey

This cocktail was created by Michael Madrusan (@michaelmadrusan) and appears in Regarding Cocktails. The name plays on both “segue,” the smooth movement required behind the narrow bars associated with Sasha Petraske, and “sí, güey,” a casual phrase the bartenders used with one another during service. It drinks like a stripped-down tequila Old Fashioned, with orange running underneath a smoky Islay Scotch float. The Scotch hits first on the nose and gradually folds into the reposado as the drink opens up.

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Rhum AgricoleBrandy

Oct 8, 2026Jordan Hughes

Pear Daiquiri

This cocktail was created by Jordan Hughes (@highproofpreacher). It takes the Daiquiri in a more aromatic direction by splitting the base between pear brandy and Pelacañas, a Mexican rhum agricole with a grassy, funky cane character. I attended a Pelacañas tasting during Portland's Barmageddon and absolutely loved the rum, so I was especially excited to use it here. The pear and funky agricole work incredibly well together, while tiki bitters and an absinthe mist add warm spice and a light herbal finish.

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Rhum AgricoleRum

Oct 7, 2026adapted by Paul McGee at Three Dots and a Dash, Chicago, IL

Three Dots and a Dash

This cocktail was created by Donn Beach during World War II. Its name refers to Morse code for the letter V, or “victory”: three dots and a dash. The garnish brings that name to life with three cherries representing the dots and a pineapple spear representing the dash. These particular specs come from Paul McGee’s version at the Chicago tiki bar Three Dots and a Dash, where he replaced the orange juice found in Beach’s original with dry curaçao and a little additional lime. I made this one in partnership with Amarena Fabbri cherries.

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CognacVermouth

Oct 6, 2026Nicholas Hearin

Scorched Earth

This cocktail was created by Nicholas Hearin at Restaurant Eugene in Atlanta in 2006. Hearin developed it while looking for a way to use Cynar in an aperitif-style drink and found that its earthy bitterness worked especially well with brandy. Cognac gives the drink warmth and weight, while sweet vermouth rounds out Cynar’s darker herbal character. The lemon oil is important here, adding a bright aromatic lift to an otherwise deep and brooding drink. This recipe follows the spec published in The Madrusan Cocktail Companion.

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