What should every liquor cabinet have

At the least, cola and lemon-lime sodas are popular mixers, as is ginger ale. For a classic mule, instead opt for ginger beer.

You can also keep an array of mixers on hand if you wish, such as collins mix, margarita mix, sour mix, and Bloody Mary mix, or you can make your own mixers with fresh fruits and juices when cocktail time arrives.

Since these tend to not keep for long especially fresh juices , purchase them once you've got your cocktail menu planned for a party. You should also stock some garnishes although it's better to keep them in the kitchen than in the bar if your bar lacks a refrigerator. In general, grab perishable garnishes the day of the party.

Others you can keep on the shelf, although once opened, you'll need to use them quickly or toss them after they expire. You don't have to spend a lot of money on barware. A few key pieces used only for mixing drinks should do the trick:. A well-stocked bar makes entertaining fun and easy. So grab your favorite booze, mixers, and cocktail app and plan your next party. Essential Distilled Spirits Distilled spirits are the essential inhabitants of the liquor cabinet.

White Rum Rum is the key ingredient in mojitos and daiquiris , as well as classic cocktails such as a Cuba Libre. It has a good, clean, neutral rum flavor. It's a great neutral-flavored rum for blending. It's a full-bodied, lightly sweet, delicious rum. Tequila You can't make a margarita without tequila. Middle shelf: Sauza Hornitos Plata blends beautifully with great flavors. Top shelf: Milagro Tequila Silver Select Barrel is a fresh tasting, slightly spicy tequila perfect for sipping, shots, or even mixed drinks.

Vodka Vodka is the go-to hard liquor because a good one is odorless and flavorless. Middle shelf: Belvedere Vodka not only comes in a cool looking bottle, but it's a clean, delicious Polish vodka perfect for blending or sipping. Sip it or mix it. Whiskey You'll want a relatively neutral, clean whiskey for mixed drinks , or whiskey afficionados can enjoy the various forms of sipping whiskey including Scotch and bourbon.

Recommended bourbon for mixed drinks: Buffalo Trace Straight Bourbon is good neat or on the rocks, and it's fantastic in cocktails as well. Expect hints of brown sugar and spice. Gin Gin is essentially vodka with aromatics added during distillation.

Budget: Seagram's Extra-Dry Gin is a classic, affordable gin that's available at most liquor stores. Middle shelf: Beefeater 24 adds some interesting botanicals like green tea to spice up this smooth and aromatic gin. Top shelf: Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin is an aromatic and spicy gin with an interesting flavor profile that makes it magnificent in martinis. Alcoholic Mixers and Liqueurs Along with your straight up spirits, you'll want some basic liqueurs and other alcoholic mixers to add to your bar in order to allow you to make a wider range of drinks.

Vermouth Vermouth is an aromatized and fortified wine that's a must in classic cocktails like the negroni and vodka martini. Cognac or Armagnac If you like to prepare heavier drinks, keep some Cognac or Armagnac in your bar. Orange Liqueur Orange liqueurs such as triple sec, Grand Marnier, and Cointreau are de rigueur for cocktails such as margaritas. Amaretto Amaretto is a popular bittersweet almond liqueur used in a number of drinks such as the Amaretto Sour.

Campari Campari is a pretty red liqueur infused with fruit and bitter herbs. Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Mixers While a lot of people will be happy to drink liquor straight-up or on the rocks, you'll be a more popular host if you also have mixers available. Most cocktails only call for tiny dashes of bitters, but a few recipes call for serious quantities of them.

To measure the Angostura, pop the plastic dasher top off your bottle with a butter knife and pour the bitters into a jigger as you would any other spirit. Build all ingredients in a shaker. Add ice and shake to chill. Double strain into a chilled cocktail coupe and serve without a garnish.

Take care while making and drinking this cocktail — both the bitters and the cocktail itself will permanently stain just about anything they come into contact with. But the recent mania for St-Germain had nothing on the late 19th century craze for vermouth, which took American bartenders and their clients by storm.

By the turn of the century, bartenders were throwing splashes of vermouth into just about everything — and in so doing created the Manhattan and the martini.

If you acquire a taste for the stuff, you might want to supplement these two bottles with a sweet white one also known as a blanc or bianco vermouth. Build all ingredients in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir to chill. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Check their freshness periodically and pay attention to expiration dates. Ice is the most important ingredient for cocktails.

You will use it in 98 percent of your drinks, either while mixing or in the glass itself. All ice is not created equal, however, and it is important to use clean, fresh ice and know the difference between the various forms of ice.

A little knowledge goes a long way to improving every cocktail you mix up. Juice is easy: pick up a bottle or two during your next trip to the supermarket. Of course, it's best to use fresh juice whenever possible. However, for everyday drinking, those bottles of ready-to-pour juices are very convenient. There are a few more ingredients that you'll want in your bar. These are ranked in order of importance to help you prioritize. Quite a few mixers can also be made at home, which will save money.

Consider stocking a variety of sodas. The list is simple and includes the basics that you are likely to encounter in recipes. When choosing sodas, try to pick up something other than the most famous brands. Today's craft soda market is impressive and can really upgrade the most basic of mixed drinks. When buying soda for the bar, try to buy small bottles. Individual servings that work for one or two drinks will ensure you're not mixing with flat soda.

Liter bottles are good for the sodas you use semi-daily and will use up within the week, though two-liters are best reserved for party service. Garnishes are the finishing touch that adds visual appeal and a splash of flavor to cocktails.

Realistically, you're probably not going to add a garnish to every drink. However, squeezing a lime wedge into a gin and tonic or expressing an orange peel over your martinis can take your beverages from ordinary to spectacular.