There has never been actually a better time if you consider drinking at home. Because, during this time of Covid-19, home is one of the scant locations where you can actually have a drink and enjoy quality time. Yes! I know as the sun kicks itself into high gear, you will be filled with several tasks and will have a hectic schedule ahead. But how about having a nice drink time in the evening and relaxing your own quality time? We all miss it, common, right!
In that case, you will require to have a nice and smart cocktail setup at home. Well! That doesn’t mean you will need to have everything and an expert to have a smart cocktail bar at home. Yes! You heard me right. All you need is to have some of the basic items to set up a rocking bar that too at the ease of your house.
Of course! You want to make nice drinks at home when your friends are around or you want to impress someone close to you, then having some essential bar cart items is pretty much important. Without further delay, let’s start with the Top 10 Most Essential Items Every Bar Cart Needs.
1. Five Basic Spirits
Well! It might sound pretty obvious but experts who have designed their own modular bar cart, have told that there five types of liquor that should be in your cart mandatorily.
And those five types of liquor are- vodka, gin, bourbon or rye whiskey, rum, and tequila. Yes! This is because they are all high standards.
2. Mixers
Once you an array of five essential spirits, you will require to have modifiers or mixers just to make the drinks correctly. Experts say: “The ones that go the quickest in my house are my sweet vermouth, my Campari, and my Cointreau.”
And experts make margaritas, martinis, as well as Manhattans and hence, they are pretty much important. Having all of them will make it easier for you. Just try to have a little bit of this, a little bit of Campari, and voilà—you have a Negroni.
Apart from that, Campari is one of the most useful things to make an amazing drink when you don’t have other stuff around.
3. Bitters
Talking about important items that your bar cart needs to have, you can’t miss out on bitters. Yes! These are the flavorful, alcoholic extracts that have taken the world of cocktails by storm in recent years. Foodies have crafted them at home, bars highlight them on the menu along with several new brands as well as flavors are popping everywhere.
They are just perfect for your home bar cart and it is an easy way to make a lot of variation in your drinks. All of these will help you to add an extra amount of spice, herbs, and other flavorful notes to the drink. However, the best of all these, unlike liquor, bitters will take up pretty little space on your cart.
It is very much suggested to have a cubby to keep your collection organized. You can always start with the classics such as Peychaud and Angostura or will dive into flavors like cardamom, smoked chili, or chocolate.
4. Mason Jars
The internet is full of recipes as well as fantastic ideas for adding a fun touch to your next shindig by serving cocktails in any of the individual mason jars. These kinds of mason jars are pretty essential as well as a versatile tool that can do the work of a mixing glass or even a shaker.
Yes! You can easily do anything you feel to do in a mason jar. Even if that means, you can stir a drink in a mason jar and know that it is going to be OK.
5. Citrus Peeler
One thing that you must add to your bar cart is the citrus peeler. Of course, you want your guests to leave your next party and still remember the amazing cocktails they tasted and make it look even better. It is what you use to garnish the glass, right?
Something as simple as an orange twist provides visual appeal as well as aromatics. Lime, grapefruit, and lemon rinds can be easily created with a citrus peeler, and then it can transform any simple drink into a professionally styled cocktail.
6. Small Hand Juicer
There are a lot of people who don’t consider a small hand juicer important but something that I would recommend to everyone is fresh juice. People frequently use a lime juice blend from the grocery store while they are making margaritas.
Experts say: “Most of the time it’s not actually lime juice, but this gross God-knows-what. Even if it is lime juice, [the manufacturer] had to pasteurize it or cook it in some way; it’s not right. But if you get one of those little hand juicers, you can squeeze a cup of lime juice in a couple of minutes. It’s a complete game changer.”
7. Shaker With An Inbuilt Strainer
Another amazing thing to have in your bar cart is none other than a shaker with an inbuilt strainer. Yes! If you are a cocktail newbie, then you might not realize that there are several varieties of strainers available in the market. One of the best strainers known for shaken cocktails is the Hawthorne strainer. The flat profile and coil of wire that hugs the inside rim of the mixing glass keep chunks of ice, fruit, and herbs from slipping into the serving glass.
And on the other hand, cobbler shakers come with a strainer, a mixing vessel, and a fitted top that are inbuilt. It means using that you will not need to think and worry about misplacing your strainer. In fact, they have a classic look that several people like to have and it will help you further to pour and make things a little easier.
8. Versatile and Attractive Glassware
From highballs to cordials to beer as well as wine, most of the drinks are supposed to be served in their very own style of glass. However, not everyone has enough room in their home bar to accommodate several styles, so in that case, you can pick and choose.
Having short glasses can be great as they are more versatile. You can literally serve everything from wine to any mixed drinks in them and they will take up very little space. In fact, it is easier to find small and cute designs and styles at flea markets as well as home stores in the shorter versions.
And cordial glasses displayed on her two-level home bar cart. You can collect antique cocktail glasses and having colorful glasses will make it look more beautiful and it will bring you that extra mile.
9. Ice Container And Tongs
Ice is pretty essential and sometimes it might be overlooked, a player in cocktails. Drinks would not be as tasty or inviting without the chill that ice provides, whether it’s large, small, hand-cut, crystal clear, cubed, or crushed.
Ice containers or buckets will not only help you in keeping your ice cool but it usually serves as a decorative accent as well. In case, you have a theme for your bar cart, you can surely get an ice bucket to match. And an extra tip that I would like to give is to buy some extra ice tongs. This will help you in case your guests can freshen up their own drinks.
10. Your Own Personality
You need to keep in mind that your friends are in your home and not in any kind of bar. So parties are a chance to share a bit of yourself. Having small frames with pictures of family, forage items such as attractive branches, or a piece of artwork that you picked up on a trip can personalize your bar cart.
Experts recommend plants as that will add a touch of nature and will freshen up things. In fact, they look visually pleasing and will make the area seem homier.
11. Charles Joly Bar Spoon
Having the bar spoon is pretty much essential as it will give you the perfect measurement and it is pretty much helpful for stirring the drinks. Too short and your sleeve cuffs will be taking alcohol baths. Too long and you’ll look like Pee-wee Herman mixing a cocktail.
12. Peak Sphere Ice Mold
If you want to serve a straight spirit or cocktail over ice, then you need to look for the 2 inches ice ball mold. Having a sphere ice mold will help you to keep our cocktail as it takes longer period to dilute your drink.
All you can do is to have two trays because at most you can have two ice spheres and not more. However, it looks very much beautiful when you serve with ice sphere and not normal ice cubes. Trust me, this little bit of addition will surely create an impact on your home cocktail bar.
13. Pure Cane Simple Syrup
Simple syrup is basically a 50-50 mixture of water along with reduced cane sugar. It is then heated and then cooled and this is one of the basic base ingredients. But unless you lack the expertise to boil water, make it, don’t buy it. I just gave you the recipe. It is now totally up to you whether you feel like using this pure cane simple syrup or not.
14. Pour Spouts
When I searched across social media platforms regarding what home mixologists were missing, I found that one of the bartender essentials is the pour spouts. In case, you have a jigger for getting the exact measurement, pour spouts are for sure easy to go without. However, they do help ensure that you don’t spill any of your precious booze, and they are pretty affordable.
15. Bar Spoon
It doesn’t matter whether you are stirring a Martini or a Manhattan or a floating wine atop a New York Sour, you will surely need a bar spoon that has a long handle. Well! Your typical teaspoon won’t be able to cut- too wide and too short.
Hence, you should go double duty by choosing a spoon that has fork-like tines on the end of the handle. It will make spearing olives or cherries out of the jar pretty easy.
Final Talk
I guess I have covered almost every essential bar items that you should have in your home bar cart to make it look exquisite and impressive. All of the above items are great at their respective jobs and will help you do the work at your home bar perfectly without much hassle.
If you feel confused and don’t know what to order first or if you have anything else in your mind that you want to add, then you are free to comment below and share with us.
