i am not a big drinker, and rarely if ever drink mixed drinks (mostly i drink wine and sometimes beer.) however some of my friends do, and i like to be a prepared host in general.
so what do i need to get? i want to keep costs down, but i want decent quality.
i have the glasses i need, strainer, need to pick up a pair of shakers (please correct my horribly off terminology) so personally all i have to get is some more booze, however as this may serve as a guide, the people who know should provide a guide to the tools as well.
as for the booze, i have currently: grey goose vodka, tanqueray gin, martini & rossi dry vermouth, glenmorangie single malt 10 year, and some amaretto. (mostly stuff left over from my old roomate before i got married.)
Necessary materials
Glassware is important. Nothing kills a nice soiree, avec la musique et les belle jeune filles et votre tuxedo like drinking gin and tonic from a plastic sippy cup. Don’t go overboard, but one or two nice lowballs, highballs, beer glasses of each type (bulb/flower, stein, pint, hefeweizen), and wine glasses should be enough. Buy one at a time as you figure out what you like.
Necessary ingredients
Looking at my bar across the way…
~~~A fridge of craft beer (this is mine first and foremost, and is a rotating selection; currently HopDevil, UFO, Floreffe, Bear Republic, organic Mill something, and Keegan)
~~~Liquor: Boodles gin, Mount Gay rum, Cazadores tequila, McClelland's scotch, Svedka vokda, and assorted bad stuff and schnapps (at least 2 schnapps for off-the-cuff girlie drinks).
~~~Mixers when a party is imminent. Sourmix, seltzer, OJ, cranberry.
3. Presentation
I used to have booze stuffed away in a cupboard, then in a dark corner of my room, then on top of my dresser drawer. If you aren't worried about conspicuous good living or teenagers siphoning it away, make your bar look good.
I've seen a chunk of bad wood look awesome with five coats of polyurethane. My family's old credenza looks spiffy with lamps, booze, and a lot of empty space on top. Even a countertop kept clear with a wall-mounted bottle opener and glasses lined up neatly can make a difference.
4. Don't be a douche.
Pee on the couch, barf in my shower, or pick a fight with anyone except Hitler and you're excommunicated from my ostentatious parties forever. Plus, since you probably train where I do, expect a little intensity next time we roll. Being a dick outside of class is treated much the same as being a dick in class, where I come from.
Compare prices between Jack Daniels and Jim Beam, either one is good to have.
Find a decently priced Irish Cream also. From what I’ve heard some people really enjoy Bailey’s and Ameretto.
Lastly get a fruity mixer. A cheap hynotique or alizay (sp?) knock off, maybe just some regular fruit liquor. I heard shark water is the new drink of the recession, it’s blue and has a cool logo.
Ice, pinga/cashaca, lime, sugar and me behind the bar, mixing the caipirihna :evil6: (you can do it with vodka as well but honestly I hate the caipirovka but I make them for the ladies)
Also try to mix some of the basics before the event, so you have the skills down and don’t look like a fool.
What also helps is this thingy to put on top of the bottle to make it pour properly (don’t ask me for the name in English) so you have a constant count (some bottels don’t pour evenly) or you use shot glasses for measuring purposes.
Straws, fruit, a knife and a chopping board are also helpful.
[quote=1point2;2078500]1. Necessary materials
Glassware is important. Nothing kills a nice soiree, avec la musique et les belle jeune filles et votre tuxedo like drinking gin and tonic from a plastic sippy cup. Don’t go overboard, but one or two nice lowballs, highballs, beer glasses of each type (bulb/flower, stein, pint, hefeweizen), and wine glasses should be enough. Buy one at a time as you figure out what you like.
Necessary ingredients
Looking at my bar across the way…
~~~A fridge of craft beer (this is mine first and foremost, and is a rotating selection; currently HopDevil, UFO, Floreffe, Bear Republic, organic Mill something, and Keegan)
~~~Liquor: Boodles gin, Mount Gay rum, Cazadores tequila, McClelland's scotch, Svedka vokda, and assorted bad stuff and schnapps (at least 2 schnapps for off-the-cuff girlie drinks).
~~~Mixers when a party is imminent. Sourmix, seltzer, OJ, cranberry.
3. Presentation
I used to have booze stuffed away in a cupboard, then in a dark corner of my room, then on top of my dresser drawer. If you aren't worried about conspicuous good living or teenagers siphoning it away, make your bar look good.
I've seen a chunk of bad wood look awesome with five coats of polyurethane. My family's old credenza looks spiffy with lamps, booze, and a lot of empty space on top. Even a countertop kept clear with a wall-mounted bottle opener and glasses lined up neatly can make a difference.
4. Don't be a douche.
Pee on the couch, barf in my shower, or pick a fight with anyone except Hitler and you're excommunicated from my ostentatious parties forever. Plus, since you probably train where I do, expect a little intensity next time we roll. Being a dick outside of class is treated much the same as being a dick in class, where I come from.[/quote]
are you frackin ghey!?!?>!}
have some dudes over for drinks or DON'T!! What is with all these rules? Is this some sort of "Mama Mia" club you're whoring out of? What the hell!?!?!??!?!?
I’d go for taste (and hangover degree - in general the more expensive booze has less damage) rather than label or price. The best, IMHO, burbons for the price are
Benchmark for about $12 a fifth and (oops, wrong bottle) and it costs twice as much and is BIB,“bottled in bond,” which means it’s like a single malt bourbon, one batch of corn to the bottle. All this is personal taste, but I’ve turned people on to Benchmark and it gets approval, and JW Dant just tastes better than most of the mid price $20 to $30ish bourbons (and is 101 proof). Jack Daniels is over-rated IMHO. I’d as soon drink Ancient Age for 1/3 the money, and Beams choice is OK…
And get some shitty Canadian like velvet to mix with coke for the un-cultured (maybe Phrost will come by, have a chicken fried steak ready to thaw).
Oh, and I put my everyday Benchmark in a decanter so the cheap label doesn’t show. And unless I’m using my father’s mai tai recipe or making gin and soda, crushed ice or ice cubes is all that’s usually needed.
(side note, I don’t really enjoy mixed drinks except for a dirty martini or a mojito now and again, I’m all about the quality Bourbon, Whiskey, Vodka, wine and such)
Hey, I have seen a bar opening where they run out of ice and lime… so I was just trying to cover you ass. If you have thought of those things, good. And I will come by and check out your bar
[quote=Squerlli;2078504]
Lastly get a fruity mixer. A cheap hynotique or alizay knock off, maybe just some regular fruit liquor. I heard shark water is the new drink of the recession, it’s blue and has a cool logo.[/quote]
for about $12 a fifth and
(oops, wrong bottle) and it costs twice as much and is BIB,“bottled in bond,” which means it’s like a single malt bourbon, one batch of corn to the bottle. All this is personal taste, but I’ve turned people on to Benchmark and it gets approval, and JW Dant just tastes better than most of the mid price $20 to $30ish bourbons (and is 101 proof). Jack Daniels is over-rated IMHO. I’d as soon drink Ancient Age for 1/3 the money, and Beams choice is OK…