i love a home bar. i love how you can have them on just about any surface in just about any iteration. packed with liquor bottles nestled haphazardly mixed in with loads of barware or neatly displayed on a silver tray with one set of pretty glassware. i love the ones that display all the things and just a few of the things. i love them on traditional carts and i love them on wooden cabinets. i tend to prefer them not with the contents tucked away in what is known as a "bar cabinet". though i have seen those done right too. i guess, for me, the idea that they are thrown together on the nearest surface in your home is what i love the most.
here are some of my favorites:
i have had a few bar carts in my time and based on experience, as great as they look, wicker carts are too wobbly.
my own bar cart needs a little help. #1 it's wicker. #2 it's too small for me, and the space. i need something with heft and storage. i'd also like space on it to add some pretty things. as for the liquor itself...well, i have all the usual suspects most of which i never use. the ones i do use and are always being replaced because drink much? are tequila, gin, cointreau and st. germain. i'm a margarita or gin and tonic girl. everything else is either too much effort or too much gross. occasionally i'll drink a negroni until i am reminded that i don't actually like them all that much. also a neighbor borrowed my campari and never returned it. rude.
so if you're looking to build a home bar of your own i got you covered...
mid century solid brass bar cart - i love that it's solid brass.
perrier jouet french champagne bucket
vintage wicker pig wine basket
french absinthe match striker - i am obsessed with these things and can't figure out for the life of me why they are so expensive.
set of 6 hand painted moroccan tea glasses - i serve wine out of these things and everyone who comes over radiates pure joy when they receive their wine in a pretty colored glass.
rattan tray with looped handles
silver plate julep cups - great for toothpicks and/or drink umbrellas.
prince of wales pub sign - how pretty is this?
pack of tropical drink umbrellas
pierre frey paper cocktail napkins
as for the booze itself...yes, those are my favorite brands.
tequila - always casamigos. i find this to be the smoothest, best tasting tequila.
cointreau ALWAYS over grand marnier.
the best margarita recipe:
(makes 2 drinks)
3 shots tequila
1 1/2 shots of cointreau
1 1/2 shots fresh lime juice (if you are making margaritas with squeezy bottle lime juice go kill yourself)
1 1/2 shots fresh orange juice (ditto anything that doesn't result from you personally squeezing the orange yourself)
limes and salt to garnish.
pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled halfway with ice. shake for about 30 seconds.
pour that golden creamy mixture over one of those fancy giant square ice cubes and enjoy the hell out of it.
pro tip- i prefer a pinch of salt popped directly into the shaker prior to shaking as opposed to salt on the rim. and i always use sea salt.
adjust the taste to your liking. sometimes i add a little more lime juice. sometimes more tequila or cointreau. depends on the day.
gin - prairie organics. the best after a number of tests.
st. germain for the yummiest gin and tonic on the planet:
(makes one drink)
1 1/2 oz gin
1 oz st. germain
2-3 oz. tonic
pour over ice
fill rest of glass with club soda
squeeze lime to taste
pro tip- tonic is full of sugar. so i use just a bit bc i like the taste with gin and the rest is club soda.
adjust the soda/tonic ratio to your taste.
bye.