The golden age of cocktails and mingling is coming back in a big way. And the hottest spot on the block isn’t on a side street, it’s down the hallway. The home bar is experiencing a renaissance and that means that curious cocktail aficionados are learning how to stock a home bar properly. Here are the secret tools you’ll need to master mixology in your own home.
A Vintage Worth Savoring
In addition to liquors and liqueurs, wine is an extremely popular choice for at-home imbibers. In addition to it being a perfect drink by itself or paired with a meal, the ways to unlock its tasting notes are nearly limitless. If you love the experience of flavors playing across the palate and picking out the subtle differences between years and bottling regions, you’re in very good company. Here are a few popular and innovative home bar essentials that will make the most out of every drop of vino:
Ice Cold Drinks…Hold the Ice
THAT! Inventions’ Double-Walled Chilling Glass ensures that every sip of your favorite wine is refreshingly icy cold thanks to a freezable core. Simply place the glass in the freezer prior to uncorking and put it to good use once the wine starts flowing. A removable cork sleeve keeps your hand comfortable while insulating the delightfully chilly glass inside.
Nothing But Pure Wine
PureWine’s Wave Wine Bottle Filter does for your favorite bottle of wine what water pitcher filters do for H2O: make a good thing even better. An innovative combination of BPA-free, food-safe fabric and beads remove harmful sulfates and histamines that make the during- and after-effects of wine linger after the glass is empty. The taste—and alcohol content—remain the same, which makes this clever device truly revolutionary for wine fans.
Keep Your Wine Chilled for Hours
Vinglace’s Stainless Steel Wine Insulator takes the same insulating, chilling design that is typically applied to upscale wine glasses and carafes and applies it to the entire bottle. This elegant solution allows a host to pour glass after glass of delightfully chilled wine without a drippy ice bucket or specialty drink glasses.
Save the Wine
Savino’s Wine Saver Carafe delivers a smart solution to that leftover wine that would otherwise “turn” in the refrigerator. A beautiful, slender carafe holds the wine while a glass “float” allows free pouring that minimizes oxygen contact automatically. Part solution, part art, it’s a must for frequent wine drinkers.
A Centerpiece Carafe
Blenko Glass Company’s Wine Carafe Vase is a cheeky, stylish nod to the classic wine carafe. Ideal for accessorizing around the bar or in the center of a dining room table, it takes wine-steeped ambiance to the next level. It’s even complete with a wide mouth for voluminous seasonal floral displays.
Shaken, Sipped, and Stirred
The heart of any well-stocked assortment of home bar essentials, the tools for exceptional DIY cocktails are as much about the display and flourish as they are about convenient crafting. These intriguing home bar tools are made to appeal to beginners and seasoned mixologists alike. They offer premium materials and designs as intoxicating as the spirits they enhance.
Hit the Mat
Talisman Designs’ Multi-Use Cocktail Barmat really does, in fact, do it all. While you’ll still need to slice garnishes, add salt and sugar rims, and dry freshly-cleaned glasses, you’ll have the perfect space to do so in an easy-to-clean, durable mat. Recessed areas for rim seasoning, pouring, and more make this thoughtful design, like a cocktail, far more than the sum of its parts.
Flavor on Ice
Herb & Lou’s Infused Cocktail Ice Cubes add an unexpected and flavorful element to classic cocktails. One of the better ideas in innovative garnishes, these special cubes simply need to be frozen and popped into a cocktail to infuse it, tea-like, with select flavor notes, herbs, fruit, and more. Elevating your pours from a familiar bottle of spirits to top-shelf status has never been easier.
A Helping Hand
Quench Home Bartending Unitool brings the handy design of a Swiss Army knife to the needs of the home bar. With ten swing-out tools, a bartender has everything they need at their fingertips. There’s a traditional knife, channel knife, stirrer, zesting tool, reamer, muddler, jigger measurement tool, bottle opener, strainer, and corkscrew. Whether it’s a bottle of fine wine, a stubborn piece of citrus, or a favorite brewski, this tool handles it all.
A Piece of Home for the Home Bar
CHART Metalworks’ Bar Cutting Board adds a little touch of home to any bartender’s setup. This sturdy, wooden board adds a modern element to a classic heavy design with a customizable medallion. Inside the medallion, a map point of choice displays any location. Maybe it’s a hometown, a favorite vacation spot, or a special place where they first met a loved one. Smooth natural wood meets iconic cartography in this must-have bar accessory.
Bring Back the Classics
Sertodo Copper Barman’s Set proves that an iconic classic can still be improved upon. A trio of tools are crafted in pure hammered copper: shaker, jigger measuring tool, and matching tray. The bright rosy hue will naturally patina with time and usage but can always be restored to its original glow with a food-safe polishing cleanser.
Raising a Glass to Raising the Bar
Your choice of dishware and glassware can be as important as the spirits poured into them. Don’t settle for the same tired set of glasses that barely survived the move from your dorm a decade ago. Refresh your under-bar stash with some of these attractive, modern options for hosting guests and pouring drinks.
Straws as Strong as Your Drinks
Strawesome’s Bent Glass Straws are a perfect example of how eco-friendly and eco-chic play well together among home bar essentials. Not only are these smooth, colorful borosilicate glass eye-catching in a cocktail, they’re also easy to clean. Preserve the flavor nuances in mixed drinks by eliminating plastic and paper materials altogether.
Read the Drink Menu
Dishique’s Anatomy Bar Coaster Set gives your guests something intriguing to read while you’re mixing, measuring, and pouring their beverage. Each contains a slice of the history of popular adult beverages. The substantial sandstone coasters not only protect the bartop with cork, but they also absorb excess moisture to prevent rings on wooden tables and glass.
Light Up Your Drink
Glo Drinks’ Light Up Drink Cubes add a spectacular light show to any beverage and automatically turn off with the last sip. Bright LED lights are activated when the plastic cubes are placed in a drink. No switches or buttons are necessary. Batteries are included and permanently sealed into each cube, offering up to eight hours of use.
Ceramic Magic
Magisso’s Bottle Cooler just needs a quick soak in cold water to offer lasting, condensation-free cooling power for a bottle of wine or liquor. The dark surface also acts as a convenient chalkboard, allowing you to personalize your bar or party with a special message, note, or invitation to your guests to pour a glass of their favorite.
Sense the Spirits
The Artisan’s NEAT Glass gives fans of fine spirits the perfect opportunity to enjoy each note and savor the flavor of each sip. A divergent rim works in harmony with the human nose, enhancing the aroma of the beverage inside and amping the flavors. This glass is designed to be used with spirits served neat, hence the clever double-entendre name.
Barware Built to Last
BarLuxe’s Unbreakable Drinkware knows the only thing more tragic than a spilled drink is a broken glass in the process. These crystal-clear Eastman Tritan copolyester glasses are built to take the “tumble” out of “tumbler” and withstand every bump, tap, or enthusiastic “cheers” gesture without breaking a sweat.
Pour a Perfect Pint
Sempli’s Birra Tasting Set allows beer fans to enjoy their favorite craft and classic brews like never before. Each glass is perfectly shaped to enhance the flavor notes of a specific beers like IPAs and Pilsners. When your tastes graduate beyond drinking directly from the bottle, these clever glasses will unlock new flavors and experiences in favorite beers from around the world.
No matter what you’re pouring, mixing, sampling, or stirring these innovative home bar essentials will help you take your home bar to the next level. Dazzle your guests and make your mixology skills the life of any party. Whether you’re having an intimate gathering with friends or holiday bashes that will become legendary throughout the year.
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