Much to our great delight, home bars are making a big comeback. More and more poeple are thinking about adding a bar area to their dining room or living room, because it is a piece of furniture that combines functionality and design for the pleasure of the senses.
Bring on the parties and let’s discover new cocktails to impress our guests!
Home Bar 101
If the idea of having a home bar excites you, follow this little guide that we created in partnership with Montreal caterer, Les Affamés.
Bars and alcohol go hand in hand, and here are two ways to get your bar supply going.
1. The ESSENTIALS. Focus on basic alcohols to prepare a wide range of cocktails. Here are 5 essential spirits for a bar: rum, gin, vodka, whisky and citrus liqueur.
2. The FAVORITES. Spread your purchases over several months according to your favorites. You want something Old Fashioned? Purchase a bourbon and some Angostura. In just a few months, you will already have many bottles on hand.
Then, you can be creative and select some sodas, syrups, bitter and other complementary juices.
- For sodas and syrups, try something different and choose mixes. Blend syrups with soda to ensure the proper dose of flavour for your recipes and to customise your cocktail drinks. Support local producers who offer high quality original products.
- Bitter is an aromatic agent with a bitter profile. The most popular right now is Angostura, a “Must” for all mixologists. A small bottle will last a long time and add character to your cocktail drinks.
Small trick: Don’t ever forget ice, a vital ingredient to any cocktail. It controls the liquors’ dilution and temperature, and can make the difference between a good and excellent cocktail.
Tools
In terms of tools, here are the essentials:
- A cocktail shaker. Choose a simple and solid two-piece model. Avoid the cocktail shaker with a lid and sieve because you risk losing a piece.
- A citrus press
- A shot glass (jigger), to properly measure your doses.
- A sieve, to filter any drink mixes that contain fruit pulp.
- A zester, to garnish glasses with a spiral of citrus fruit. Very chic!
- A bar spoon, that is long (at least 10 inches) with a twisted shaft to mix ice-filled cocktail drinks.
Once you have your alcohols and essential bar tools, all you need are glasses, decanters, flutes, etc. Here are the accessories that will be most useful:
- The Old Fashioned glass for short drinks, like aperitifs and digestives.
- The Collins glass for long drinks (aperitifs and others).
- The Martini glass
- The wine glass, champagne flute and beer glass.
Now that you have all your material in hand, it’s time to mix some drinks!
Mobilia asked Alexandre, cocktail expert and associate at Les Affamés to create two exclusive cocktails for readers of The Style Blog, the “Nori” and the “Womy”. Nori is warm and comforting, while Womy is festive and effervescent.
Nori
Ingredients:
– A handful of whole-grain curry (or a blend of spices like cinnamon, clove, ginger, cumin, cardamom)
– 2 oz. of maple syrup
– 10 oz. of red wine
– 2 oz. of Belleit bourbon
– 1 orange
– 1 lemon
Method:
• Squeeze the lemon and orange. Reserve the juice and peels.
• In a saucepan, bring the wine to a boil, then infuse the curry, and lemon and orange peels in the wine for 20 minutes over medium heat.
• Add the maple syrup and bourbon.
• Filter the wine.
• Serve hot with an orange slice and a cinnamon stick.
Womy
Ingredients:
– 4 oz. of Cava Parès Balta
– 1/2 oz of Ferme Apicole Desrochers Cuvée de la Diable Honey Wine
– A small piece of preserved lemon peel
– 2 shots of Angostura
Method:
• Soak the preserved lemon peel in Angostura.
• Pour the Cava Parès Balta and Diable Ferme Apicole Desrochers Honey Wine in the serving glass
• Add the preserved lemon peel at the very end.
• Serve cold.
