Home Bartending for Beginners

With the current restrictions around restaurant visits many of us have had to learn how to mix our favorite cocktails at home. We have baked our bread, maybe started penning our scandalous coming of age story, and now it was clearly time to tackle the world of amateur mixology. How hard could it be?
There I was, all of my ingredients set out, ice at the ready, and a thirsty and impatient partner tapping her fingertips on our counter top and..
I didn’t have the equipment required to make even the most basic tipples. While it’s a poor carpenter who blames his tools, I choose to believe it’s the reason some of my earliest attempts were destined for an unceremonious drain dumping. If I had the video of me trying to cobble together a martini shaker from an old plastic baby bottle and mismatched lid…I probably still wouldn’t post it for fear of a mass backlash of deeply insulted bartenders.
With my wife slightly disappointed but seemingly placated by a perfectly chilled bottle of local brew, I began my search for the bare bones of a home bar.
Prices for home bartending kits start as low as $20 (Mixology Bartender Shaker Set) to close to $100 (Mixology Bartender Kit:11-Piece Bar Tool Set).
I took one final sip of my baby bottle mixed Manhattan and knew I needed to start at the bottom.
My kit arrived the next day and after a quick wash I was already feeling the confidence of Tom Cruise in Cocktail creeping up in me despite not having the slightest clue what to do with this swirly spoon or springy doodad.
Luckily, this particular kit came with a small beginners guide and a few quick google searches had me familiar enough with my new kit to tackle some of the staples.
Did you know that a Manhattan isn’t even supposed to be shaken? I do…now.
I’ve since expanded my beginner’s bar with a few other add ons (listed below). My partner hasn’t cracked a beer in weeks. My freezer is always stocked with ice. I have an unfounded, and unshakeable opinion on what makes the perfect martini. Catch me in line at one of our local distilleries, I’m the guy no longer mispronouncing the word ‘mojito’.