Stocking your Bar
The plethora of spirits, liqueurs and sweeteners that are in the market is massive. At the beginning, it might feel like you’re missing out on a lot of ingredients and that every new recipe calls for something you don’t have. Worse yet, you may find yourself in a situation where certain ingredients aren’t even accessible to you, be it because of availability or cost.
The most important thing is to understand that this is perfectly normal, that it happens to all of us, and that building your bar will take time.
This guide aims at striking a balance between giving you direction, informing your decisions, and letting your personal preferences dictate where you go next.
When you're exploring recipes in our app, always check the Hints section, where we will include possible substitutions for an ingredient, or links to DIY versions that you can try to make.
Going a step further, let's say you want to build a starting collection of ingredients, one that will allow you to make the largest amount of cocktails but keeping cost at a minimum.
In order to achieve such goal, first ask yourself: What is my budget? Set a monthly limit for yourself and stick to it.
You and your friends will soon realize that the drinks you make for them will be way cheaper than those served at a bar, and with practice, they’ll taste just as good or better.
The next important question to ask yourself is What kind of drinks am I looking to make?
- Spirit forward cocktails like a Martini or a Manhattan?
- Sours like the Daiquiri and the Caipirinha?
- Are Tropical & Tiki drinks more your thing (Like a Mai Tai or a Piña Colada)?
- Do you prefer Low ABV options? Something like an Aperol Spritz or a Mimosa?
- Would you like to explore one particular spirit? Gin, Tequila, Whisk(e)y?
The Classics
If you want to explore the classics, purchase two or three decently priced bottles of your favorite spirits.
After that, go for one or two liqueurs, and / or fortified wines. The former could be in the form of an orange liqueur (Triple-sec or Curaçao), the latter should be vermouth (the dry and sweet varieties).
Note that any form of fortified wine has to go in the fridge after you open it, and even then, it won’t last that long.
If they’re available to you, consider buying smaller bottles.
Lastly, a bottle of Angostura Bitters will come incredibly handy and useful. Orange or Peychaud's bitters are the other two types of bitters that you’ll commonly see in classic recipes.
Tropical & Tiki
If you’re all about feeling like you’re on vacation and want to explore the world of Tiki, then undoubtedly the backbone of your bar will be rum.
Keeping with the rule of three, you probably want one bottle of white rum, one aged rum (Jamaican) and one dark / black rum.
In terms of liqueurs, Allspice Dram and Velvet Falernum come up the most (you can make both of these yourself). A bottle of Angostura bitters is essential.
Everything else comes in the form of juices and syrups, most of which we encourage you to make yourself, as it will make a huge difference. If you don’t believe us, try a Piña Colada with fresh pineapple juice and one with store bought juice – you’ll thank us later!
Low ABV
Let’s say that you want to focus on low ABV (Alcohol by Volume) cocktails. Vermouth (dry, blanc and sweet) or Sherry (Fino and Amontillado) are probably your best bet. You'll be topping these off with Champagne or Prosecco, so get at least one bottle.
After that, complement your selections with some liqueurs: Aperol and / or Campari, for a bittersweet element. Triple sec, curaçao or crème de cassis, for a sweet one.
Crucially, dedicate part of your budget to get high quality produce (oranges, grapefruit, strawberries), as they’ll often be the stars of the show.
Closing Thoughts
If you already have a general idea of what you like and have tried different cocktails in bars, your best bet would be to look up recipes you want to make and take note of what ingredients come up the most.
Take advantage of the different search options in this app: You can search by category, ingredient and even mood. Take a look at our collections, or start bookmarking cocktails that caught your attention. If you keep your inventory up to date, our App will tell you what ingredients you are missing in order to try the recipes you saved!