Home Bar

I am in the process of building up my home bar. I have the standard bottles that would be expected (whiskey, gin, tequila, rum, etc...) as well as various less standard bottles (Campari, Pernod, Cointreau, vermouth). I also have a siphon whip and standard bar kit.

My question is: What bottles would the Chefsteps team recommend in addition to the usual bar suspects for a home bar? Ideally, this wouldn't go higher than $300. I was thinking Chartreuse, Drambuie and Grand Marnier but am very open to suggestions.

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Comments

Tim_230841

Get a bottle of Lillet and Hazelnut Schnaps (e.g. Prinz). I love both!

lfmichaud

Buy a good selection of bitters, they make the backbone of many cocktails and changing bitter is the easiest way to modify the profile of a cocktail. Dry and sweet vermouth is also a given. After that it depends on the type of cocktails you like. If you're into tiki drink you'll need some fruit puree/nectar and beef up your rum selection. More into classic cocktail maybe add a few gins etc. Not sure buy lemon, limes, tonic, soda, make some simple syrup and experiment away.. Cheers!

Amos_Schorr_168815

If you have Cointreau, why get Grand Marnier? I would definitely get chartreuse, because it's awesome. I can't stand Drambuie, but it basically tastes like fernet+mediocre blended scotch+way too much simple syrup, so I wouldn't go out of my way to get it.

Get a nice variety of vermouth. There's dry and sweet, of course, but even within sweet, there are 2 main styles. One of them is Carpano (every bar manager at a decent bar will have a bottle of this), and I forget what my favorite of the other style is called, but google will tell you.

And yeah, get all kind of bitters. Make syrups. But also make flavored salts. Herb salts are super easy to make, and they're a nice addition to a drink. Cilantro salt makes an extra special margarita. Mint salt is nice in a julep. I imagine parsley salt would be a nice addition to a number of cocktails that use liquors I don't appreciate.

Carter_elkins_199333

A large ice mold

Carter_elkins_199333

I also like beaker style mixing containers. Very cool.

HammeredChef_DEFINITELY_does_NOT_work_at_22134

a must have...

lockgavin

There are a couple books that _may_ interest you.. one is called the 12 bottle bar. It goes through tools, the bottles and what you can then make with said bottles. Another being The Brilliant Cocktail Concept: Bottle by Bottle You Build a Cocktail Bar, which I think is likely well below you.. I haven't looked at it but I think it may not be as current (?)

I would check out the first one and see where that leaves you.. perhaps grab a copy of the Bar Book or Dead Rabbit Drinks Manual for ideas of what other spirits are called for often.

Also PDT Cocktail Book has a good section on spirits and PDT pantry. Def worth a look at the local library.

I'm just trying to get into mixing respectable drinks myself also.

Also, I'd pass on the large ice mold myself and just get an insulated cooler (small one), fill mostly with water and put in freezer until it freezes thick enough for you. Due to directional freezing it pushes air and impurities down and will create a solid block of clear ice. Once you pop that thing out and let it rest of the counter for a few minutes you can easily cleave it into cubes of your choosing - and they will be clear. That's all in Liquid Intelligence.. you should check that out too.

Jack_Mayer_85396

I hadn't thought about books ... Dave Arnold's book, Liquid Intelligence, would be a great addition to you cocktails game!

Marc_Webb_271853

All great suggestions! Thank you all! I do realize that I may have not asked the question I originally should have the first time around, namely: "what bottles give you the most versatility?" Basically, What bottles, after the basics, will give you the most options for drinks and not just be $50 for only one type of cocktail. There's only so many mini bottles to try and even fewer well stocked bars in the rural area I live.

I've mostly been relying on bitters, mixers, the basic bottles and rapid infusions (vodka is so versatile here) to come up with drinks and it's been going pretty well. I just wish I had a larger, but still versatile palette

Samuel_68313

Chartreuse definitely. Maraschino Liquer is a great one as well. Bourbon and rye whisky also.

Go to a charity shop and search for interesting and unique glasses. I've never been a great believer that the glass really changes the drink but there's a sense of theatre to cocktails and good selection of glasses is very important.

lfmichaud

There is an electronic version of the PDT book available that you can have on your tablet or phone. That's easy to use and can keep an inventory of your ingredients and give you the recipes you can make with them. The same company is also offering a few other cocktail apps using the same ingredient database. (Classic cocktails, Tiki etc. ) They're a little bit expensive but I highly recommend them.

lockgavin

Thanks, I'm going to look into that app!! Seems like an awesome idea.

Truth is all the books i mentioned are available digitally, just depends on where your morals are I suppose. The library is also a great place to peruse, if you are morally higher than some of us