It's likely Miles Thomas, the owner of Scrappy's Bitters, has made you a drink—during his 10 years bartending, he worked at Serafina, Branzino, and the Hideout. He fiddled with an old bitters recipe until he concocted something so popular he needed a storage closet under a Belltown restaurant to keep up with demand. Thus Scrappy's Bitters was born, the first new American bitters company in 100 years. "Scrappy" is a nickname Miles acquired because of a (now outgrown) tendency to get in fistfights, which his superhero build would suggest he usually won.

The still-growing business now inhabits a building in Fremont. Like Willy Wonka or the military, Miles only allows certain people on the premises, in order to keep his recipes top secret. Bitters are made by macerating herbs and fruit into alcohol, and were originally marketed as a cure-all. While it's no replacement for antibiotics, it tastes much better in cocktails than penicillin, and apparently does, in fact, aid digestion. It's a key ingredient in many classic drinks, such as Sazeracs and Manhattans. Miles says you can find his bitters all over town, but mentioned that Canon and Tavern Law carry every single kind, including cardamom and chocolate. He's recently developed a habanero tincture he calls Firewater, which may burn your Bloody Mary garnishes to pickled cinders if used carelessly.