Sunday, December 7, 2008

Tips For A Well-Stocked Bar

Now that our first mocktail party is in the past I have been looking at what ingredients make a well-stocked bar for mocktails. The biggest thing to consider is what you will use the most. Anything extra can be bought when you are having a party or want to try something new. The main ingredients I have tried to keep in my bar are mostly fruit juices and mixers that we enjoy. The juices I have are pineapple, grapefruit, cranberry, orange, peach. We also like Pina Colada, Mai Tai, and Mojito mixers. Club soda, Sprite, and Ginger Ale are also key ingredients for mocktails. I keep a bit of simple bar syrup on hand as well. It is really simple to make and helps make any drink sweeter if desired. A cocktail shaker is really nice to have though not totally necessary for drinks made with mixers. But any drink you make by mixing different juices will warrant a cocktail shaker. The cocktail shaker not only mixes your drinks, but also chills them relatively fast if you do not want your drink served on the rocks. And of course for the real effect of a cocktail you will want fancy glasses. Right now we have low ball glasses and stemmed wine glasses, but I would eventually like to get martini glasses and margarita glasses. Garnishes and garbage also add something extra to your mocktail experience, but not necessary for everyday use. I mostly save that for parties.