Home Bar Essentials
For those who enjoy entertaining, having a well-stocked bar is pivotal to your success. A handcrafted cocktail can lighten the mood, schmooze the in-laws, wow a friend, and impress a date. Being able to mix a variety of drinks at home adds a certain swanky swagger to your hosting ego, and rightly so! It’s a heck of a lot cooler than only being able to offer canned beer and shots of Fireball. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, we’re just helping you raise the bar a little!
Stocking a home bar can be a fun and exciting endeavor, but it can also be a bit overwhelming. To get started, it’s important to consider the essentials that will form the foundation of your bar.
The best way to stock your bar is with the ingredients necessary for the cocktails you like to drink. It is your bar after all! Don’t get overwhelmed right out of the gate; stocking your bar is a marathon, not a sprint. Take it slow and gather quality ingredients over time and eventually, you’ll end up with a bar you’ll be proud to show off!
Additionally, having the right tools on hand can make crafting cocktails easier and more enjoyable. Here are some tips on how to stock a home bar, the essential items you’ll need, and the necessary bar tools
How to stock a home bar
Spirits
What vodka lacks in color, taste and aroma, it makes up for with mixability. There a numerous cocktail you can make with vodka and just a few other ingredients like a Screwdriver, Sea Breeze, Moscow Mule, Martini, Lemon Drop, and on and on. For affordability and mixability, Reyka is a great choice.
Great for sipping or mixing, a good bourbon is an essential spirit to have on hand. It allows you to whip up some of the classics like a Manhattan, Old Fashioned, and a Mint Julep. Evan Williams Single Barrel is a highly rated and highly affordable option that mixes as well as it sips.
A good gin is always nice to have on the bar as its one of the base spirits for lots of popular cocktails. Think Negroni, Gimlet, Tom Collins, French 75, and of course, the Gin and Tonic. Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin is a wonderful choice and its unique botanicals (and gorgeous blue bottle) help it stand out in a crowd.
Delicious, tropical, and highly mixable, rum comes in dark or light versions. Start with a light rum as those are used for mixing cocktails, while darker rums are best for punches. Popular cocktails include the Pina Colada, Daiquiri, Mojito, Mai Tai, and the simple Rum and Coke. Papa’s Pilar Rum is a great way to kick-up your cocktails or just serve over ice.
For sipping, shooting, or mixing, tequila is a must have. Gold is typically cheaper and used for mixing while silver is great for serving straight up. Popular tequila cocktails are the Bloody Mary, Paloma, Tequila Sunrise, and the Margarita. Pueblo Viejo Blanco is one of the most affordable and tasty tequilas available.
Mixers
Your mixers depend on what you want to make, but it can’t hurt to have the basics handy! Keep in mind that the higher quality the mixer the better your drinks will be, so resist the urge to skimp on quality here as it will be noticeable.
Club soda, tonic water, cola, sprite/7 Up, ginger beer, orange juice, cranberry juice, tomato juice, pineapple juice, and angostura bitters (technically not a mixer, but used in splashes to flavor drinks).
Garnishes
For the final touch, you’ll need to garnish appropriately.
Cocktail olives, cocktail onions, Limes, Lemons, Tabasco, salt, pepper, sugar, and ice.
Houstonians, be sure to visit one of our Houston liquor stores today and stock up on your favorite spirits for your home bar!
What Bar Tools Are Essential For A Home Bar?
You’ll only need a few tools to get started and they’re pretty affordable.
Shaker: A cocktail shaker is essential for mixing drinks. It allows you to quickly and easily combine ingredients and create a perfectly chilled cocktail.
Jigger: A jigger is a small measuring cup used to measure out precise amounts of liquor and mixers.
Strainer: A strainer is used to separate the liquid from the ice or other solids used in shaking or stirring a drink.
Bar spoon: A long-handled spoon used for stirring cocktails and layering drinks.
Muddler: A muddler is used to crush herbs and fruits in the bottom of a glass to release their flavors and aromas.
Now that your bar is stocked all you need to do is put a sign up with your hours of operation or else, you’ll be dealing with “customers” well past your preferred closing time!
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