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Home bars are kind of a lovely thing. You don’t even know the things you’ll come up with after stocking yours. For example, my new favourite drink came about because I made lemonade. Real lemonade, with the juice of 6 lemons, splenda to taste and about 2 L of water. Trying that out with some Midori Melon Liqueur was an unexpected, yet brilliant, twist. It’s surprisingly green, and surprisingly good.
So, if you want a better stocked bar than mine, currently? (it’s not hard, I promise.) Here’s a few of the things that you need to make sure you have on hand to be able to server pretty much anything your guests want.
Start with the basics:
There are eight basic liquors which are the fundamentals of a well-stocked bar. They include:
Vodka, rum, bourbon, gin, tequila, brandy, scotch and Canadian whisky
Hint: Always store liquors with the original cap on, not a pour spout, to minimize evaporation.
Your best bets are:
Finlandia Vodka
Havana Club Rum (if you’re in Canada) or Bacardi if you’re in the US
BeefEater Gin
Herradura Tequila
Hennessy or Remy Martin Cognac
McCallan 12 year Scotch if you have good scotch drinkers, or Glen Fiddich if you don’t
Crown Royal or Canadian Club whisky
Next, add in some liqueurs to your cabinet. The three basic flavours that will give you a good base for a variety of cocktails include:
Almond, such as Amaretto
Coffee, such as Kahlúa
Orange, such as Cointreau
And for the everything else you’re going to want to include …
Vermouth: Both the dry and sweet varieties are essential for many drinks, including the classic martini.
White wine: For a good, basic white, stock a California chardonnay, oaked and Un. Also, include a pinot grigio, a sauvignon blanc and a blend.
Red wine: a merlot, pinot noir, a shiraz, and a Cabernet Sauvignon as well as possibly a burgundy (red wine drinkers can be picky)
Champagne: $20 will buy a decent bottle of sparkling wine, or proseco. If you want real champagne (like Veuve Cliquot, you’re looking at about $65+ a bottle. That depends on how sophisticated your guests are). Sparkling wine is a good mixer for drinks, like a mimosa.
If you have beer drinkers coming over, you’ll want to see what they prefer, but in general, you’d be well to stock a good light beer, a good lager and a good dark beer. There are several sites which can provide options for you if you’re unfamiliar with beer options. If you are familiar, go with your gut and see what will happen.
Hint: Vermouths and wines do not keep as long as liquors, so you might want to choose smaller bottles. Make sure to store wine bottles on their sides so the corks don’t dry out.
The nice, but not necessary category:
Bailey’s Irish Cream, a mixture of Irish whiskey and dairy cream often used in coffee drink. Even more a possibility category: flavours.
Grand Marnier, a liqueur made from cognac (a distilled wine named after the Cognac region in France) and orange essence
B & B, a blend of Benedictine (a liqueur flavored with various plants and spices) and brandy (a distilled wine)
Framboise, a raspberry liqueur (like Chambord)
Port, a fortified wine (like Sandaman)
Melon liqueur, often known by the brand name Midori, which is made from honeydew melon
Schnapps, a distilled beverage that comes in many flavors, from peppermint to peach, and is most often used as a mixer in cocktails (look for Giffard, it’s the brand preferred by many bartenders)
Tabasco and Worcestershire sauces, used for bloody marys and ceasars
Bitters, try to keep angostura on hand, as well as some of the Fee’s Brothers flavours. You never know when you might find need.
Mix – you’ll need this
Club soda
Hint: Instead of opening a large bottle, keep small bottles or cans of juices on hand for mixers.
Garnishes
- Lemons
- Limes
- Cherries
- Salt
- Olives
- Dark Chocolate
Hint: Some drink recipes call for simple syrup. It’s easy to make; just mix equal parts of sugar and warm water. Cook over low heat until clear, and then boil for 1 minute.
That should cover all of your bar needs, for the most part. If you get a cocktail nerd coming to visit, then you might have to step it up, but in the meantime, this’ll cover most of your cocktail needs.
