Starting his career in the drinks industry as a bartender toward the end of 2001, Adam spent the next decade working for and with a host of bars in Aberdeen, and around Scotland, where the potential to grow cocktail culture in his hometown superseded proposed moves to Edinburgh, London and New Orleans. Bartending provided the perfect arena to pursue his passion for food, drink and travel, heavily influenced by his upbringing and mixed background with Scottish, Libyan and Italian roots.

His work in consultancy, training and events went hand-in-hand with his primary role as a bartender, and first made the industry sit up and take notice before an unheralded run of local, national and international cocktail competition successes covering a three year period firmly put his name on the map. During this period Adam was also busy working on The Jerry Thomas Project, recreating all the drinks from Professor Thomas’ seminal tome. It was this venture which conceived the reformulation of Boker’s Bitters, and later Dr. Adam Elmegirab’s Bitters Ltd; now trading as The House of Botanicals where he produces a range of Gins, Cocktail Bitters and Aperitivi & Digestivo.

When not shocking his palate with intensely bitter liquid, Adam travels extensively, writes for a number of drinks media publications, is the author of the Book of Bitters published in October 2017, has been a judge for Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Awards, Drink International’s World’s 50 Best Bars awards, as well as being a panelist for the CLASS Bar Awards, preaches the virtues of the power of collaboration as seen with his work alongside a number of world famous bars and brands, and regularly presents seminars and tastings at national and international cocktail events such as Boutique Bar Show, Whisky Live Paris, Whisky Live Dublin, Prague Bar Show, London Cocktail Week and Tales of the Cocktail.