Must-have Cocktail/Bar Ingredients

[Gilb3rt]

Hey all,

I wanna build op a good home bar, but what are the most have stuff in a good bar.

I already have these:

Gin (Bombay) (Tanqueray)

Vodka (Absolut Citron) (Finlandia Lime) (Smirnoff)

Tequila (some cheap shit)

Whisky (Jack D)

Rum (Havana club Blanca) (Mount Gay rum)

Cachaca (51)

Martini (Extra Dry) and (Rosso)

Baileys

Kahlua

.....

But it looks like something is missing..

[birder53]

Hey all,

I wanna build op a good home bar, but what are the most have stuff in a good bar.

I already have these:

Gin (Bombay) (Tanqueray)

Vodka (Absolut Citron) (Finlandia Lime) (Smirnoff)

Tequila (some cheap shit)

Whisky (Jack D)

Rum (Havana club Blanca) (Mount Gay rum)

Cachaca (51)

Martini (Extra Dry) and (Rosso)

Baileys

Kahlua

.....

But it looks like something is missing..

←

Here are a few suggestions. I'm sure more people will chime in here soon and there is a thread on building a home bar here somewhere.

Bourbon

Rye

Brandy or Cognac

Cointreau/triple sec

Maraschino

Green Chartreuse

Angostura bitters

Orange bitters

[Peter Green]

Hey all,

I wanna build op a good home bar, but what are the most have stuff in a good bar.

I already have these:

Gin (Bombay) (Tanqueray)

Vodka (Absolut Citron) (Finlandia Lime) (Smirnoff)

Tequila (some cheap shit)

Whisky (Jack D)

Rum (Havana club Blanca) (Mount Gay rum)

Cachaca (51)

Martini (Extra Dry) and (Rosso)

Baileys

Kahlua

.....

But it looks like something is missing..

←

Here are a few suggestions. I'm sure more people will chime in here soon and there is a thread on building a home bar here somewhere.

Bourbon

Rye

Brandy or Cognac

Cointreau/triple sec

Maraschino

Green Chartreuse

Angostura bitters

Orange bitters

←

The above gives you a good, solid base for a bar.

Take any of the above, and branch out.

Armagnacs.....I'll always take these over a cognac.

Tequilas - get a good sipping tequila

Single malts - go for something with strong, speyside peat first, then something mild like a Dalwhinnie second.

Avoid, at all costs, anything that glows in the dark like a creme de menthe or parfait d'amour.

If you do come across them, run. Run quickly.

[Bricktop]

Avoid, at all costs, anything that glows in the dark like a creme de menthe or parfait d'amour.

If you do come across them, run. Run quickly.

No. Get them. No CdM = no stingers amongst many other classics. OK I did get the white, but I also just picked up a bottle of Parfait Amour, and am starting to have fun with it.

Down the road, add some stuff like Drambuie, Benedictine and Grand Marnier which are useful in cocktails and also pretty darn good solo,

One thing that is very clear from eje's superb thread "Stomping through the Savoy" is that different brands of liquor have very different results. There are the obvious ones like types of gin, scotch, bourbon, and rye, but also in the liqueurs you buy. For example, there was an immense difference in my Aviations between Luxardo () and Stock maraschino.

[jlo mein]

In order to qualify as a stinger, does a cocktail need to have Creme de Menthe in it?

I came across a tasty drink listed on the Appleton site which is 2oz amber rum and 1oz coffee liqueur, however they call it a Stinger.

Edited November 12, 2006 by jlo mein (log)

[Peter Green]

One thing that is very clear from eje's superb thread "Stomping through the Savoy" is that different brands of liquor have very different results.  There are the obvious ones like types of gin, scotch, bourbon, and rye, but also in the liqueurs you buy.  For example, there was an immense difference in my Aviations between Luxardo () and Stock maraschino.

←

I second that. If you haven't looked at it yet, get into the "Stomping through the Savoy" thread and see what sort of things in there you like.

You could also check out Tiki bar TV on the net for an alternative take.

But I still say, evil lurks in that bright green bottle!

Edited November 13, 2006 by Peter Green (log)

[judiu]

Jim Beam Bourbon and Rye, and must add the green Fairy, absinthe!

[slkinsey]

In order to qualify as a stinger, does a cocktail need to have Creme de Menthe in it?

Yea.

[Nathan]

creme de cacao is a must.

if you can get suitcase absinthe....

cointreau or a high end triple sec (this is my most-used alcohol after gin and cognac/brandy) are beyond essential

bitters

grenadine

simple syrup

Campari

Carpano Antico if you can find it

Punt Es Mes if you can't.

I'd add Plymouth or Hendrick's as your basic cocktail gin.

(reserve Sapphire for martinis and Tanqueray for tonic)

Maraschino Liquor

a decent whiskey or Bourbon (not great since it's for mixing -- you should be able to find something Irish in the $20-25 range that would be perfect for this)

if you're going to be making sweeter vodka-based drinks for the unenlightened then I highly recommend Creme De Cassis or Chambord (frankly, there's no reason to spend the money on Chambord for drinks like the "French Martini" -- just get an $8 bottle of Creme De Cassis)

[johnder]

I would say of my pretty obscene collection, I use only about 15 bottles regularly.

Granted I am not counting the fridge in my basement that is full of vermouths

The ones I use most:

Plymouth Gin

Beefeater Gin

Woodford Reserve Bourbon

Elijah Craig 12year Bourbon

Rittenhouse Rye (100 p)

Old Overholt Rye

Green and Yellow Chartreuse

Aperol

Campari

Luxardo Maraschino

Maraska Marascihno

MB Apry

MB Curacao

Grand Marnier

Luxardo Triplum

As far as in the vermouth family:

Dry/Sweet Noilly

Dry/Sweet Martini

Martini Bianco

Lillet Blanc

Lillet Rouge

Punt y Mes

Dry/Sweet Vya

Carpano Antiqua

[thirtyoneknots]

http://www.martinirepublic.com/item/bar-advice-redux/

^A highly entertaining and highly informative piece on setting up a home bar, written by Dr. Cocktail.

Also, Cassis != Chambord, although cheap versions of Chambord can be found.

-Andy

[Hassouni]

Rum, lime, and sugar

[Duvel]

Whiskey, sugar, bitters ...