Humans are social creatures. We love to be with family and friends. People spend a lot of time and money gathering together in bars, hotels, and restaurants drinking the fancy cocktails prepared with a multitude of equally fancy ingredients.
The best thing about these fancy cocktails is you can make them at home and save yourself a lot of money.
What do you need to create your very own bar at home?
Glasses, glassware, and mugs.
You will need good glassware first. It doesn’t matter what cocktail you can mix up; if you can’t serve it to your guests, then it isn’t a cocktail. Choose high-quality glassware that fits with the cocktails you’ll be making.
Shaker, strainer, and jigger.
A shaker and a strainer are essential in making your cocktails and accurately presenting them. You can choose the quality of the item to fit your needs. If you are making drinks for hundreds of friends, then you will need a high-quality shaker.
If you are only planning on making drinks for just a few people, then you can save money and buy a lower quality item.
A jigger is vital if you do not know how to measure and count pours. The jigger will add consistency to every drink you make. The jigger allows you to recreate the same drink over again.
Syrups.
Syrups are a great way to add depth to the cocktails you will be making. Grenadine syrup is the perfect way to add flavor and depth to an everyday cocktail.
You can select different syrups for the cocktails you plan on making. Adding different flavors can expand one basic cocktail into several different varieties.
You can also add simple sugar syrup. This simple ingredient has many tasty recipes that you can make on your own. It is very easy to prep before your party starts. Once you have it, the syrup can add much-needed sweetness to the depth of flavors you will already have at your disposal.
Spirits
You need five essential spirits in your home bar: rum, whiskey, tequila, vodka, and gin. Most of your basics are covered here. You can mix and match costs and qualities depending on how much you wish to spend and the quality of the spirits you want.
You can make a list of cocktails you like to drink and you wish to serve. With that list, you can come up with the spirits you need to make them. If you don’t want to go through that step, these five spirits will allow you to make most cocktails.
Bitters.
Bitters are a great item to have on hand. You will not use bitters for every cocktail, but they can add a balance and depth to sweeter cocktails. Many older recipes will add bitters to cocktails.
Recipes like this can be a great starting point for making cocktails at home. You can start to mix cocktails that your friends have never heard of but will love.
Spices.
Here is another option to add a burst of flavor to your bar. You can start with Tabasco sauce, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. With these few, you can make a multitude of different drinks.
Spices are another list that you come up with on your own too. Just by looking at what you already drink and what you want to make, you can come up with a complete list of the spices that you will need.
Other varied ingredients you will need to purchase when you need them are items like fresh fruit and mint. You should buy these fresh preferably on the day you will need them.
That way the flavors are bright and inviting. Juices like lemon, lime, and orange are staples in the bar world and will cover most cocktails that you will come across.
With these simple items, you will be able to make the most common cocktails you or your friends would want.
Having good friends in an environment where cocktails will be served will motivate you for the safety and health of your guests. Just be sure to drink in moderation and stay safe.
Identity Magazine is all about guiding women to discover their powers of Self-Acceptance, Appreciation, and Personal Achievement.
We ask that every contributor and expert answer the Identity questions in keeping with our theme. Their answers can be random and in the moment or they can be aligned with the current article they have written. In that way, and as a team, we hope to encourage and motivate each other, thus inspiring you to Get All A’s.
1. What have you accepted within your life, physically and/or mentally? What are you still working on accepting?
That we have to all appreciate the little things and to not take anything for granted.
2. What have you learn to appreciate about yourself and/or within your life, physically and mentally? What are you still working on to appreciate within yourself and/or life?
I’m blessed to have loving family and friends in my life.
3. What is one of your most rewarding achievements in life? And what makes YOU most proud? Any goals and dreams that you still have?
Graduating from Arizona State University in 2013
Photo by Nathz Guardia on Unsplash
