Starting your own personal bar at home
Why you should start your own mini bar in the comfort of your own home (and how!)
Are you bored out of your wits at home due to the pandemic? Or are you looking to upgrade your kitchen into a mini personal bar? Regardless of your reasons, we believe that there’s nothing wrong with having a personal bar where you can experiment and craft your personal concoctions.
Here are some essentials you need to build your personal bar:
Bar tools
A definite essential when mixing your cocktails, check out this mixology bartender kit on Amazon which consists of 10 pieces of essential bar tools. Now you can finally practise your favourite bar scene with a cocktail shaker.
Liquor, duh
Which bar doesn’t have liquor? Here are some of the essential liquors for a basic personal bar! We would recommend having this composition for a personal bar:
- 1x Tequila
- 1x Gin
- 1x Bourbon
- 1x Blended scotch
- 1x Vodka
These are our personal recommendations and you can substitute any liquor of the same type for another one that you prefer.
Essential mixers:
Juice
If possible, we would recommend using fresh juice for your cocktails, however if you want an alternative convenient, ready-to-pour juices will do just fine! The most common juices to use are lemon, lime, orange, pineapple and cranberry juice; of course, you can use any other juices that you enjoy.
Bitters
Bitters are an aromatic, concentrated infusion of botanicals in an alcohol base. They are commonly used in bar mixers that add flavor to cocktails. Bitters usually range from 20-50% alcohol by volume, however, they are used in small quantities thus it doesn’t factor into a drink’s alcohol content. Considered as a necessary ingredient in most classic cocktails, bitters are a definite must-have for your personal bar. Consider getting a bottle of Angostura Aromatic Bitters which is a brand that is widely considered as the most popular bitters.
Sodas
Stocking a variety of sodas will ensure that you have the basics that are used in most recipes. Some include: club soda, ginger ale, coke, tonic water, sprite etc. Since sodas are relatively affordable, feel free to experiment with different brands in various recipes and settle with the ones that give you the best results.
Liqueurs
Liqueurs are a type of sweet alcoholic drink made from flowers, nuts, spices, herbs and some type of alcohol. This type of liquor can be consumed on their own but they also make great mixers. You may have heard of popular brands like Baileys Irish Cream and Jagermeister, both great liqueurs you can add to your personal bar!
Garnishes
You’ve seen cocktails that have those fancy orange peel twists, it just enhances the entire aesthetic of the cocktail. Some of the essential garnishes that you can consider adding to your personal bar are: oranges, limes & lemons. They can be used as both garnish and a source for fresh juice.
Basic cocktail recipes
Now that you are all prepped with the right tools, here are some basic recipes that you can start trying out and wow your friends and family with these simple yet delicious cocktails!
Old Fashioned
2 oz bourbon or rye whiskey
2 dashes of Angostura bitters
1 tsp of sugar
Orange twist garnish
Put sugar into a glass and add in dashes of bitters. Pour the whiskey in and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add ice and stir again before serving. Add in an orange twist as garnish.
Moscow Mule
2 oz vodka
4 to 6 oz ginger beer
0.5 oz lime juice
Wedge/ slice of lime
Squeeze lime juice, add in two or three ice cubes, pour in the vodka and fill it with cold ginger beer, stir it well and serve. Add in a slice of lime as garnish for aesthetic purposes
Whiskey sour
2 oz whiskey
1 oz lemon juice
1 tsp sugar
1 egg white (optional)
Combine ingredients into your trusty cocktail shaker and shake. Add ice and shake again. Strain over ice into a glass.
End note
With that, we have reached the end of the essentials you need to create your very own personal bar at home! Staying safe at home is especially important to combat the spread of the pandemic, but that does not mean that you cannot have fun! With how convenient delivery is in Singapore, you can get everything we mentioned above delivered straight to your doorstep.
So stay safe, get creative and most importantly, stay tuned to our blog as we have more content planned out such as how you can improve your personal bar, more cocktail recipes for you to experiment with (together with some of our own original recipes) & more liquor knowledge!
