If you’ve already got a home bar equipped with the essentials and can whip up a variety of classic cocktails, but you’re now ready to broaden your selection with some new bottles and bitters, this guide is for you!
Elevating your home bar expands your repertoire of recipes and enriches your serving abilities. With a broader range of bottles and advanced tools, approach enhancements with the same curiosity: What do I want to explore next? Which new additions will unlock the most opportunities?
Spirits Beyond the Basics
Once you’ve mastered the essentials, consider adding these gems to your collection:
- Aged Rums: More complex than starter white rums, perfect for new experiments or enhancing classic rum cocktails. Try Flor de Cana’s affordable añejo or invest in Rhum JM’s agricoles. Cost: $20 – $60
- Amari/Amaro: These Italian liqueurs add depth and can replace vermouth. Start with Montenegro or explore unique flavors with Cynar, Fernet, or Cardamaro. Cost: $30 – $50
- Bitters Collection: Elevate your cocktails with Peychaud’s, creole, grapefruit, chocolate, or nut bitters, awakening new flavors. Cost: $10
- Italian Vermouths: Choose Carpano Antica Formula, Punt e Mes, or Cocchi Vermouth di Torino for richer, complex profiles. Cost: $20 – $35
Next Level Cocktail Equipment
- Garnish Peeler: Ditch the vegetable peeler for one that creates beautiful fruit twists.
- Cone Strainer: Perfect for double-straining cocktails with muddled ingredients.
- Citrus Juicers: Easily juice fresh limes and lemons.
- Lewis Bags: Use with a mallet for ideal crushed ice production.
- Nick & Nora Glasses: Elegant tulip-shaped alternatives to coupe glasses.
- Rimming Dish: Holds salt or sugar for beautifying glass rims.
Design Your Own Drinks with the Golden Ratio
Familiarize yourself with countless recipes, and you’ll notice recurring proportions. One foundational recipe template is the golden ratio:
- 1 1/2 ounces of a base spirit (whiskey, rum, gin, etc.)
- 3/4 to 1 ounce of a vermouth-type ingredient
- 1/4 to 1/2 ounce of a liqueur or a sweetener
- 1 or 2 dashes of bitters
This formula encourages you to get creative and tailor recipes to your taste.
