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Steal My Tricks 2: Stocking Your Own Home Bar

Whether you are preparing for a private party, or determining a plan for a small cocktail event – I want to make your bar set up easier! Take it from a former professional bartender, event planner, and home mixologist – my tricks will help you save time and money when it falls to you to stock the bar!

First off, tailor your drink choices to your guests. What I’m about to lay out are solid guidelines for the general public. However, they may not apply to your particular group. If you are hosting folks who work in the brewing industry, you might want want to focus on upgrading the quality and variety of beer offerings.

But generally:

WINE

One red, one white.

Those are the only options you need to offer your guests. After that, it is simply scaling quality and quantity. The fewer varietals of wine you offer, the easier your evening becomes.

I would recommend a Pino Noir and a Sauvignon Blanc. These two cover all your bases. You can also opt for a red blend and a white blend. Other solid choices for red wines would be Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, or a Merlot if you must. As far as Whites, Chardonnay and Pino Grigio are safe choices.

Oh yeah, and do not forget a wine key or corkscrew! Many a gathering has been ruined by the absence of such a tiny instrument.

BEER

Heineken.

Nobody loves Heineken, but nobody hates it either. It’s also cheap, making it the perfect party beer. Avoid stocking only Bud Light or stouts since they can be polarizing for some. If you wish to offer a variety, I’d go with a wheat bear such as Blue Moon and an IPA such as Lagunitas.

Do not forget a bottle opener!

COCKTAILS

Unless you already stock a full bar at your home or venue, don’t attempt to do so for a single evening. Just to cover a basic range of cocktails, you’re talking hundreds of dollars worth of spirits, mixes, and sodas.

I recommend picking one signature cocktail for the evening and investing in that. I personally recommend Moscow Mules. They are super simple, very tasty, and can be modified with various extra flavors or spirits if you wish. Plus they are only four ingredients: vodka, lime, ginger beer, and ice. (You don’t need to buy the fancy copper cups unless you really want to.) They also do not require any special equipment such as a martini shaker, muddler, or blender. You just need a knife to cut the limes. (I highly recommend using fresh lime juice. Compared to the bottled stuff, there is just no comparison as far as flavor).

You can serve up your signature cocktail to order, have guests make them themselves, or prepare a big batch ahead of your guests arrival! (Don’t make the Moscow Mules too early though because the ginger beer will go flat).
Obviously, you do not have to do Moscow Mules. Other fantastic cocktail choices include margaritas, Manhattans, mimosas, and sangria.

If your event is casual enough, your guests may bring their own spirits to contribute to the bar. Even if you have a signature cocktail, it is good to have some simple mixes on hand for them to enjoy a Rum & Coke or Vodka Cranberry. At minimum I would recommend Coke, Diet Coke, and lemon-lime soda. You can also add orange juice, cranberry juice, tonic water, soda water, and sour mix if you wish. (Coke is the standard for cocktails. Nobody orders a Jack and Pepsi).

And one final cocktail party tip: stock up on ice! You will need lots of it. The days leading up to the event, start making extra trays of ice cubes and dumping them into a big bowl in your freezer. Even then, you may want to pick up more ice at the store.

NON ALCOHOLIC

There has been a recent and sharp rise in the demand for quality non-alcoholic drinks. You do not have to do anything fancy, but making sure that there is something tasty available for your non-drinking guests is important. A high quality lemonade, iced tea, novelty soda, or other beverage should suffice. Your mixes behind the bar can also double for this role if someone just wants a Diet Coke.

ICE

Did I mention ice? Does ice deserve its own category?

Yes!

Do not underestimate the importance of having enough ice for every guests’ first, second, and third round of drinks. You do not want to be rationing ice cubes at the end. There are few things sadder than a lukewarm Gin and Tonic with a single ice cube slowly bobbing away into nothingness.

Even if you are only doing beer and/or wine, that means you are likely using coolers to chill your inventory. That means ICE!