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The Tools
Welcome to the Ultimate At-Home Bar Essentials Guide, where I will help you transform your space into a stylish and fully stocked haven for cocktails. Whether you’re hosting a gathering with friends, enjoying a quiet night in, or simply looking to hone your mixology skills, having the right tools and ingredients at your fingertips is essential.
By no means am I a professional bartender. I consider myself a self taught at-home bartender. I enjoy mixing drinks and having the essential bartending tools to help me create delicious and beautiful cocktails. This list will give you the basics as to what you will need to start off your home bar essentials.
Cocktail Shaker
Well, what is a bar without a cocktail shaker! This is an absolute must-have if you want to make good cocktails. Look for a quality stainless steel shaker.
- Boston Shaker aka Tin-on-Tin– This is what you will typically find in a bar. It’s a 2-part shaker and consists of the tin that is topped with a glass or another tin.
- Cobbler Shaker – A smaller, easier to handle shaker. It’s a 3-piece shaker that has a built in strainer. This is what I prefer to use and is the easiest for me.
- French Shaker aka Parisian Shaker – A mix between a boston and cobbler. It’s a 2-part shaker and does not have a strainer built in, so you will have to strain your cocktail separately.
- Mason Jar Shaker – My newest addition to my collection. You just buy the shaker lids and put onto any mason jar! I love these Jarware Regular Mouth Lids and Jarware Wide Mouth Lids.
Jigger + Shot Glass
These will ensure you have accurate measurements for your cocktails. They come in different shapes and sizes, but they all do the same thing, which is give you accurate pours. You will find jiggers in these measurements; 0.25 oz, 0.50 oz, 0.75 oz, 1.0 oz. 1.5 oz and 2oz. To name a few, there is the classic jigger, japanese jigger, bell jigger. You get the point.
Bar Spoon
A versatile tool that helps to stir, layer, muddle and measure your cocktails. Bar spoons come in different lengths and styles and are usually long and slender.
Mixing Glass
Used for stirring cocktails such as Martini’s and Negroni’s. Not all drinks are shaken, so this is where a mixing glass would come in handy.
Muddler
The purpose of a muddler is to mash whatever ingredient you put into the shaker. It helps to release the essential oils, aromas and flavor into your cocktail. I use this wooden muddler from Barfly.
Strainer
Used to strain fruit pulp and ice shards that you don’t want in your cocktail.
- Hawthorne Strainer -The most popular type of cocktail strainer. It has a flat metal top, which is lined with a metal spring that is there to catch ice and other solid ingredients.
- Julep Strainer – Sort of like a large spoon with metal holes in it. Designed to hold over a mixing glass.
- Fine Mesh Strainer -Held beneath another strainer and catches any ice that may have come through the first strainer. Think of it as an additional filtration system for your drink.
Straws
Some may argue here about using straws, but I like having cocktail straws to sip my drinks. This is not something you need, but nice to have in your bar. You can find some cute striped straws and make your cocktail fun. Again, not necessary but is an option.
Cocktail Napkins
Who doesn’t love a cute napkin served with your cocktail? I don’t use these all the time, but when I see a cute print when I am out and about, I will buy and stash away in my cocktail cabinet.
Citrus Juicer
Now this is my favorite part of making a cocktail. Juicing all those fresh cut limes. Don’t ask me why, it just is. There are so many options for juicing lemons + limes, from handheld manual juicers, to manual countertop juicers, to automatic juicers. Choose what works for you. I purchased an OrangeX juicer years ago. It’s a cool looking piece to have sitting on your counter. Although my husband would beg to differ. I know, i have too much kitchen stuff. The Nama J2 juicers are great also, but when you’re only needing a small amount of lime juice, a manual handheld works just fine. I like my Barfly Deluxe Manual Juicer.
Citrus Peeler
If you like to garnish your cocktails with a twist of lemon or orange, this citrus peeler comes in handy.
Garnish Sticks
You can buy reusable stainless steel sticks in different sizes/colors, which I prefer to use. There are also bamboo knot cocktail sticks, which you can get like 100/pack. You can find some fun garnish sticks that have pineapples, honeybees or other shapes.
Glass Rim Plate
A glass rim plate is nice to have for rimming your glass in salt/sugar.
Glassware
You can’t have a good cocktail now unless you have some favorite glasses to drink out of. There are a lot of glasses to choose from when it comes to making specific drinks. I choose to have a few and that’s it. Of course you can buy every glass that goes with every cocktail, but really it’s a preference on what you want to drink out of. These are some basic glasses to start your home bar; old fashioned whiskey glasses, coupe glasses, wine glasses, highball glasses, margarita glasses, shot glasses and the list goes on and on.
Ice Molds
Having several ice trays/molds comes in handy, especially when you’re making several cocktails. You don’t want to run out of ice. That just can’t happen. You can find ice molds in different shapes from spheres, cubes, mini cubes and even shapes.
Would You Prefer to Buy A Set That Has Most Everything You Need?
Here are my recommendations;
Essential Spirits
Let’s face it. Going to the liquor store can be a bit overwhelming. I know it can be for me. There are so many options and having a general idea of what you are looking for will help before you go in. Don’t feel like you need to buy everything all at once, which can be extremely spendy. Buy a bottle or two to add to start your at-home bar collection and go from there. Buy a bottle when you can. Your collection will slowly build up and before you know it, you will have a wonderful at-home bar to enjoy.
Now here is the fun part.
Tequila + Mezcal
An absolute must if you’re going to have yummy margarita’s to sip on. Now there are different kinds of tequila such as Silver aka Blanco (un-aged), Reposado (slightly aged) and Añajo (extra aged). My tequila of choice is a silver tequila. Mezal is made by smoking the agave plant underground. That’s how it gets the smokey flavor. You either like Mezcal or you don’t. I feel you just need to find a brand you like and then stick with it. I love making Spicy Mezcal Margarita’s! My ultimate favorite is Montelobos Espadín.
Rum
Essential for tropical cocktails like the Pina Colada, Daiquiri or Mojitos. When I think of rum, I think of tropical cocktails. Something about rum + coconut + pineapple = tropical paradise for me. Do yourself a favor and buy the good stuff.
Vodka
A versatile spirit that is used for many drinks like the Moscow Mule or Martini’s
Whiskey
Whether Bourbon, Rye or Scotch, whiskey is essential for classic drinks like Whiskey Sour, Old Fashioned or Manhattan.
Gin
Perfect for Gin & Tonic, Martini’s and Negroni’s.
Yes, that is Whipped Cream Vodka. Don’t judge me.
Did You Enjoy This Essential List?
I hope this Ultimate At-Home Essentials Guide was useful to you. This is just a general idea of what tools and equipment that I have found helpful in building my home bar. I have not listed everything here, but this is a good starting point.
If you want more tips, tricks and cocktail recipes, sign up for my email list and follow me on Pinterest! I would love to hear from you and see what your favorite cocktail is!
