You don’t need a wall of expensive bottles or professional training to make great cocktails at home. With a few essential tools, a handful of versatile spirits, and some basic techniques, you can mix drinks that rival what you’d get at a cocktail bar. This guide covers everything you need to get started.
Essential Bar Tools
You can start making cocktails with just a few basic tools. Don’t feel pressured to buy a complete bar kit right away. Here’s what actually matters:
- Cocktail shaker: A Boston shaker (two-piece tin) is what professionals use, but a cobbler shaker (three-piece with built-in strainer) is easier for beginners.
- Jigger: A dual-sided measuring tool, typically 1 oz and 2 oz. Precise measurements are the difference between a balanced cocktail and a sloppy one.
- Bar spoon: A long-handled spoon for stirring drinks in a mixing glass. The twisted handle helps with smooth stirring technique.
- Strainer: A Hawthorne strainer fits over your shaker tin. If you use a cobbler shaker, one is built in.
- Muddler: For pressing herbs (like mint for Mojitos) and fruits to release their flavors and juices.
Your First 6 Bottles
With these six bottles, you can make hundreds of different cocktails:
- Vodka – The most versatile spirit. Browse 2,496 vodka recipes.
- Rum (light) – Essential for tropical drinks and Mojitos. See 2,292 rum recipes.
- Gin – For martinis, G&Ts, and countless classics. Explore 1,522 gin recipes.
- Tequila – Margaritas and beyond. Check out 635 tequila recipes.
- Bourbon or Whiskey – Old Fashioneds, Whiskey Sours, and more. Find 655 whiskey recipes.
- Triple Sec or Cointreau – An orange liqueur used in Margaritas, Cosmopolitans, and dozens of other cocktails.
Essential Mixers to Keep on Hand
- Fresh limes and lemons (always fresh, never bottled)
- Simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, heated until dissolved)
- Tonic water and club soda
- Orange juice, cranberry juice, pineapple juice
- Ginger beer
- Angostura bitters
- Grenadine
Basic Cocktail Techniques
Shaking
Shaking is for cocktails that contain juice, cream, or egg whites. Fill your shaker about two-thirds with ice, add ingredients, seal it tight, and shake vigorously for 10-15 seconds. You’ll feel the shaker get ice cold. Strain into your glass.
Stirring
Stirring is for spirit-forward cocktails like Martinis, Manhattans, and Old Fashioneds. Fill a mixing glass with ice, add ingredients, and stir gently for about 30 seconds. Stirring chills and dilutes the drink without adding air bubbles.
Muddling
Place herbs or fruit in the bottom of your shaker or glass and press gently with a muddler. For mint, press lightly to release oils. Don’t pulverize it. For fruit, apply more pressure to extract juice.
Start Mixing
The best way to learn is to start making drinks. Browse our 6,993 cocktail recipes, or use the Drink Finder to discover what you can make with whatever bottles you have right now. Start simple, measure carefully, taste as you go, and most importantly, have fun.