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Setting up a home bar can be dauntingand expensivewhen starting from scratch.
So we asked some New York City mixologists to help us pare down the bare necessities.
), here are the ten items you’ll need to start mixing drinks for your nextsoiree.
He recommends Tito’s handmade vodka from Texas.
For a rounder, smoother gin, try Plymouth.
He recommends Rittenhouse Rye for the more serious drinker.
“you’re free to’t go wrong with Gosling or Cruzan.”
For making margaritas, Brodeur and Seider favor Herradura Silver tequila mixed with Cointreau.
Many popular cocktails, like the Negroni, require Campari.
Ditto for Pernod, an anise-flavored liquer.
The highballs and tumblers should have some heft to them.
Coupes and flutes should be delicate.
“It is the soul of your cocktail.”
For clear, quality cubes, see to it to use filtered water.
Unless you plan on entertaining far from the kitchen, don’t bother spending money on an ice bucket.
Keep bottles of vermouth in the refrigerator.
For sweet vermouth Brodeur and Seider both lean toward the age-old Dolin Brand from France.
Dolin Rouge is floral and delicate, a good match for gin-based cocktails.
For dry vermouth, DeGroff is fond of the extra-dry Noilly-Pratt, also French and ancient.
Any home bar should include an orange-flavored bitters as well.
Brodeur and Seider both champion the Fee Brothers' brand.
You’re going to need tonic water for those bracing gin and tonics.
Club soda is also a must.
“You’ll get much better-tasting cocktails by squeezing your oranges, lemons and grapefruit fresh.”
(Hence the requisite handheld or manual juicer.)
Ginger beer is a must for the Dark and Stormy and other retro cocktails.
DeGroff says having a bottle of pomegranate juice on hand is also nice to flavor a martini or margarita.
Eventually, it’s possible for you to infuse your simple syrups with ginger, cranberries or lavender.
Most bartenders prefer the classic Boston shaker.
It’s made of two tumblers that fit tightly together.
Shaking the drinkmaraca styleallows you to aerate it and to mix the ingredients thoroughly.
you’re able to find one atwww.thebostonshaker.com.
A jigger is the basic measure used for cocktails.
Brodeur prefers the metal variety and suggests the key in that includes several different ounce measurements.
In a pinch, a tablespoon will do: two tablespoons are equal to one ounce of alcohol.
You’ll also need a long-handled bar spoon for stirring the final cocktail.
you’re free to find all of these tools atwww.cocktailkingdom.com.
Some garnishes impart flavor, others just plain sex appeal.
Invest in some quality green olives which can be stuffed with anything from blue cheese to almonds.
Mixologists favor the Spanish Queen olives for a martini.
Fresh ginger is key to a Moscow Mule.
Fresh herbs such as thyme sprigs or piney rosemary twigs also add texture and flavor to a cocktail.
Consider crisp cucumber and celery stalks as well.
You’ll also need brown sugar cubes for Champagne cocktails and rim salt for margaritas.
A good muddler should be made of solid wood, and should have a large flat head.
It should also be long enough to erase the edge of a mixing glass.
Muddling releases the essential oils from leaves and citrus.
Be gentle when you muddle.
For a basic cocktail primer, pick up Dale DeGroff’sThe Essential Cocktailor Gary Regan’sThe Joy of Mixology.
While you’re at it, seek out some recipes for great bar snacks orhors d’oeuvres.
Fine cocktails and empty stomachs don’t mix!
