Matt Pietrek

Bio

Matt Pietrek began his cocktail wonkery with a modest home bar that soon grew out of control, leading him to revive a long-dormant writing career – this time about cocktails and spirits rather than computers. In the decade since, he’s become one of the genre’s most respected writers. With three decades of experience crafting complex computer systems, Pietrek excels at making complex topics accessible and fun. From the chemistry of fermentation to spirit regulations, from cocktail recipes to rum history, he casts a wide net over little known and overlooked topics.

Penning works for books, magazines, and his CocktailWonk.com site, Pietrek was also a final-four finalist for Best Writer and Best Publication at the 2018 and 2019 TOTC Spirited Awards. He is currently the Community Envoy for the West Indies Rum and Spirits Producers Association (WIRSPA).With his wife, Carrie, he recently published Minimalist Tiki: A Cocktail Wonk Look at Classic Libations and the Modern Tiki Vanguard, as well as a book about the history of British rum (title TBD). He’s currently working on a third book about Caribbean rum. Now based in New Orleans, he can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as @cocktailwonk, or maybe on the barstool next to you.