Imbibe 75 Person to Watch: Trevin Hutchins

Cocktail recipes typically start with instruction to, for example, measure a certain quantity of gin. Rarely, if ever, do they begin: “Make gin.” But for Trevin Hutchins, beverage manager at Aphotic in San Francisco, composing drinks for the ocean-oriented restaurant sometimes starts with creating the base spirits and taking cocktail construction from there.

Hutchins, whose résumé includes a chain restaurant, a tiki bar, and nightclubs as well as fine dining, says the white tablecloth environment naturally appeals to him. “I’m a food-motivated person, and the high-technique thought and care for ingredients is a huge part of what drew me in to fine dining,” he says. In an environment such as that at Aphotic, the cocktail approach needs to closely track what’s going on in the kitchen—which has presented its own set of challenges and surprises.

“I never thought I’d be using something like smoked fishbone in a cocktail, or fish sauce or garum.”

“I never thought I’d be using something like smoked fishbone in a cocktail, or fish sauce or garum,” he says. “We use nori and other seaweeds, and it’s been really cool to see how these ocean ingredients work.” Translating such ingredients into cocktail-ready form sometimes involves vacuum distillation, which required a year of trial and error on Hutchins’ part, and a distillery license from the state of California for the restaurant’s tiny two-and-a-half-liter still. But the learning and regulatory headaches are balanced by the positives, such as the opportunity to focus on locally farmed and foraged ingredients, and the ability to create bespoke spirits for the bar.

Today, Hutchins works with a range of 27 house distillates, liqueurs, and a gin created from five botanicals. These ingredients make their way into house drinks, including those designed for a cocktail tasting menu built around a central theme, such as a recent one focused on bodies of water. Hutchins finds the R&D part of the job particularly appealing, and his plans for 2024 include taking bar guests on one breathtaking flavor experience after another. “Pertaining to the program, we’re pushing right now, honestly, to just get weird.”

Click here to read more about some of 2024’s other Imbibe 75 People and Places to Watch.