Ready to finally set up the perfect “grownup” bar, just in time for the holidays? If you’re committed to making red party cups, handles of generic-label liquor and jugs of soda a thing of your past, check out these tips from Msn.com.
Always have base liquors around—those found in commonly ordered drinks—so you can make just about any classic drink. Consider stocking up on vodka, gin, rum, bourbon, tequila and triple sec. To really impress guests, keep high-quality dry vermouth and sweet vermouth on hand.
Don’t toss out your cranberry, pineapple and orange juice as they are found in plenty of classic drinks, but upgrade your selection of mixers so you can have three- and even four-ingredient cocktails. Pick up some simple syrup and Angostura bitters, found in drinks like mojitos and Manhattans.
No more stirring with a straw for you. Get the following essentials: a Boston shaker (a two-piece shaker that can serve both for shaking and stirring), a jigger for measuring liquor, and a muddler for mashing fruit and dispersing herbs into drinks like mojitos.
Also pick up a vegetable peeler to make lemon twists and orange rinds for drinks ordered “with a twist,” a handheld citrus juicer to add in fresh juice, a strainer to pour a chilled drink into a glass without releasing the ice, and a long bar spoon so you can reach ingredients at the bottom of glasses when stirring.
Remember, the purpose of your drinks isn’t just to get your guests drunk anymore. Presentation matters now. Make a bartender tray just like the ones you see at real bars, stocked with Maraschino cherries, green olives, lemon rinds, lime slices, mint and basil.
If you keep just three types of glasses at your home bar, you can serve almost any type of drink in the appropriate glassware: tumblers (for stiff drinks like whiskey on the rocks), tall glasses called highballs for mixed drinks with several ingredients like Long Islands, and martini glasses.
If you’re hosting a party in your home, guests feel safe setting their drink down for a few minutes. Of course then they forget where they left that drink, and come asking for a new glass. Whatever the number of guests will be, multiply that by three and keep that many clean glasses on hand.
Guests will place their glasses on windowsills, the top of the TV, on stacks of books—you name it. Cover areas you don’t want destroyed by cup rings with linens, or strategically place coasters to give your guests a friendly hint.
If you’re trying to come up with your own recipes, or you got too heavy-handed with an ingredient in a batch of drinks, try this trick used by bartenders: citrus and sugar are a magical combination and adding just a little simple syrup to an overly-sour drink will balance it out. Likewise, an overly sweet drink will benefit from a few drops of lemon or orange juice.
Here’s our own tip to buy you some time with your guests so you’re not stuck behind the bar the whole night. Print up a menu with just three-to-five classic or seasonal cocktails based on ingredients you have at home. Guests will feel encouraged to stick to the menu, so you can get away with making big batches of drinks and getting back to your party.