The home bar has become a house staple in recent years. Surging in popularity during the pandemic, when bars and restaurants were closed, home bars remain a wonderful resource for homeowners looking for an in-house escape or to entertain guests with their mixology skills.
Home bars are judged primarily by the taste of what they serve, and they don’t need to be overly large to impress. While lavish home bars with a sink, fridge, sprawling counter, and dedicated drinking room are great, they also require money, time, and space to build and successfully maintain. Smaller home bars still provide the benefits of home cocktailing to your house or apartment.
Adding Spirits to Your Home Bar
While the size of your home bar does dictate what you can include, it’s unnecessary to stock it with everything offered at your favorite bar. Bars need to cater to a wide variety of interests and tastes, but a home bar only needs the ingredients for you and your friends’ favorite easy cocktails. Additionally, stock your bar with the spirits that you enjoy. It doesn’t make sense to have five different brands of vodka on hand when you and your guests prefer whiskey.
To start building your stock, aim for one of each of the four great liquors: vodka, gin, rum, and whiskey. This gives the most versatility to your bar’s selection. Deciding which other ingredients to add is a matter of personal preference. We suggest identifying a few of your favorite, easy-to-make cocktails, then building your go-to ingredients around that list.
The Best Easy-to-Make Cocktails
Especially if your home bar is short on space, simple cocktails fit easily into your bar’s “menu” due to their limited ingredients. These tried-and-true recipes have stood the test of time, and many are largely regarded as classics.
Ultimately, what you stock your bar with is a matter of taste. Someone who enjoys whiskey might have a more thorough whiskey selection than someone who enjoys vodka. Knowing what you like is a great place to start, but learning some easy cocktail recipes is a great way to satisfy your tastebuds and show off your mixology skills to your guests.
Try these simple cocktails to get started:
- Old Fashioned
- Whiskey Sour
- Negroni
- Gin and Tonic
- Lemon Drop
- Mojito
- Moscow Mule
- Cosmopolitan
The Neat Pour
For some home bars and whiskey lovers, there is no better nor simpler drink than a whiskey neat. Having a high-end whiskey can help improve the taste; however, high-end whiskey tends to be expensive, so finding a tasteful, affordable whiskey can be a true benefit to your home bar.
That’s where Infusion Spiral comes in. With our sophisticated and easy-to-use spiral infusion system, simple batches can achieve the rich taste of whiskey stored for ten, fifteen, or even twenty years—all in a fraction of the time. Visit our website to find out more about how Infusion Spiral can benefit your home bar.