Murray Stenson
American bartender (1949–2023)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Murray Russell Stenson (July 29, 1949 – September 22, 2023) was an American bartender in Seattle, Washington.[1][2] Stenson was an instrumental figure in the cocktail renaissance of the early 21st century, most notably behind the bar at the Zig Zag Café where he reintroduced the pre-Prohibition cocktail The Last Word.[2][3] In 2010, Stenson was named "Best Bartender in America" by Tales of the Cocktail.[1]
Murray Stenson | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 29, 1949 Colville, Washington, U.S. |
| Died | September 22, 2023 (aged 74) |
| Occupation | Bartender |
Life and career
Stenson was born in Colville, Washington, and grew up in the Seattle suburb of Kirkland.[4] After dropping out of Shoreline Community College, he worked a series of service jobs before being hired as a bartender at a Seattle restaurant called Benjamin's.[4] He was dissatisfied with what The New York Times called "the sickly sweet [cocktail] concoctions of the 1970s", and began reforming the bar's drink offerings with new ingredients and styles.[4]
Stenson later worked at Il Bistro and the Zig Zag Cafe, where his reputation grew among cocktail enthusiasts from the 1990s onward, and lifted the profiles of each establishment.[4] He left the Zig Zag Cafe in 2011, unfavorably comparing it to Disneyland due to the amount of attention he attracted; he explained in a 2020 interview that he "only ever saw [himself] as a bartender" and disliked the fame.[4] He worked for short stints at a variety of establishments thereafter, before retiring due to poor health and the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]
Personal life and death
Stenson was married to Cynthia Carson from 1980 until divorcing in 1982, and to Antonia Busto from 1982 until divorcing in 1984. He had two children.[4] Stenson died from complications of Guillain–Barré syndrome at his home in Seattle on September 22, 2023, at the age of 74.[4]
