The Bottle-by-Bottle Guide to Building Your Home Bar Alc.

Want to be a master mixologist in the comfort of your own home? Here are all of the bottles you'll need, plus the booze that will take your drink-making (and drinking) to the next level.

The Core of your bar

Lemons and Limes

Real talk: Few things are more important to a home bar than fresh citrus. Every time you hit the store, re-up on lemons and limes.

Seltzer

Takes the sting out of high-proof booze, while adding a little kick of carbonation. Totally necessary for highballs, spritzers and rickeys of all sorts.

Bitters

Light Rum

Even if you're not crazy about Piña Coladas, you need rum on hand to pull off a Mojito (with mint, lime sugar, and seltzer) or a Cuba Libre (just add Coke and lime.)

French Vermouth

Most martinis call for dry, French vermouth. Some Manhattans do, too. And if you want to be able to make either drink "Perfect" (half sweet, half dry vermouth) you better have both on hand.

Gin.

Every bar has gin. This is not up for debate.

Vodka

Even if you haven't been able to stomach vodka since college (and, hey, you're not alone) you're still going to need a bottle in your bar to please the ridiculous number of vodka-soda drinkers in your life.

Tonic

For G&T's, bro.

Rye whiskey

Rye was all but dead a couple of decades ago, right up until a handful of brilliant bartenders simultaneously realized that this spicy, peppery grain makes for a better Manhattan than bourbon, which is sweeter. Follow suit.

Italian Vermouth

Speaking of those Manhattans: sweet, italian vermouth is key. But buy your vermouth in half-sizes—it goes bad like any wine, and unless you're the world's most pretentious lush, you won't go through a full-sized bottle very quickly.

NOW TAKE YOUR BAR TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Blended Scotch


Blended scotch can ruin your night (and the next morning) if it's not well-made, but a good bottle and a little bit of ice makes for a perfectly approachable nightcap.

Peaty Scotch

Scotch from the Islay region has a distinctive smoky quality that some people love (and others absolutely hate). If you're in the latter camp, move along. But if you've got the taste for the stuff, you should splurge on an interesting or limited bottling from a distillery you trust. Most advise drinking it neat, but we're big fans of mixing it up.

Dark Rum

There are some things that only a Dark 'n' Stormy can fix, and for that, you need dark rum.

Mezcal

Think of mezcal as the scotch to tequila's irish whiskey: it's smokier, more intense, and generally made in smaller batches. (Technically, tequila is a type of mezcal, and they're both distilled from agave.) Sub it in for tequila to throw a curveball in any margarita, or challenge your friends to try it straight. Practice makes perfect.

Bourbon

This is America. You have to have a bottle of bourbon. And no, it does not have to come from Kentucky.

Absinthe

Look, not every bar needs a bottle of absinthe, but how are you supposed to rinse a Sazerac glass without it?

Single Malt whiskey

For whiskey lovers who hate peatiness: A straight-up single malt will taste more like the oak that matured it than the fire that toasted the grain.

Ginger beer

Again: you've got to be prepared for those Dark 'n' Stormy cravings.

Campari or Gran Classico Campari's got the market cornered when it comes to bitter Italian liqueurs, but we like Gran Classico just as much in a Negroni or Americano.

Triple Sec

Keeping a bottle of orange liquer—like Cointreau or Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao— might seem esoteric, but it's the only way to make a margarita without sacrificing your integrity.

Oranges

Complete the citrus trifecta by buying a few oranges with your lemons and limes. Now go make yourself a properly garnished Old-Fashioned, to celebrate.

Upgrade Your Bar

Making great drinks doesn't just take top-shelf booze—you need the right equipment, too. GQ's resident cocktail expert rounds up 10 tools every home bartender should have in their kitchen, from shakers to glasses.

Shaker
Most proper drinks require stirring or shaking—sorry, we don't recognize Red Bull and vodka as a proper drink. It's all about mixing the flavors of the different ingredients properly and giving the drink the appropriate amount of coolness and dilution. (When it comes to cocktails, dilution is a good thing.) This Parisian-style shaker is both elegant and durable. Use both parts to shake drinks with citrus, like Margaritas, and use the bottom to stir spirit-only drinks, like Manhattans and Martinis, where you want the drink to be bright and clear.

Hawthorne Strainer
After shaking or stirring a drink, you want to make sure to remove all of the ice and/or fruit pulp. There are a variety of strainers out there, but the easiest one to use is the Hawthorne strainer—just make sure to get one with a tightly wound coil.

Jigger
Some see the use of jiggers in bars as a a sign of stinginess. Do these people complain about bakers using measuring cups, too? Accuracy in cocktail making counts—at least if you want a good drink. There are more traditional measurers like this, but if you don't want to have a bunch of them cluttering your counter, this OXO number is the way to go.

Cocktail Stirrer
Please, don't use just any old spoon to stir your drink. Are you making a Manhattan, or Metamusil? A long, thin bar spoon like this one will help you stir quickly without creating a lot of disruption that may make the drink cloudy—stirred drinks like Martinis should be bright and clear.

Citrus Juicer
If a recipe calls for citrus juice, always use the fresh stuff. Always. It takes a little more effort, but produces infinitely better drinks. Toss away the sour mix and start squeezing—your margarita will thank you for it.

Yarai Mixing Glass
My favorite cocktail? The one I make practically every evening after work? The Manhattan. Sure, I could use the bottom half of a shaker or a pint glass to make the drink, but this stout glass is easier to handle, has a spout, and is much more elegant. Not a necessity—even though it's the standard mixing glass in fancy cocktail bars from Tokyo to Brooklyn—but totally worth the extra space in your cupboard if you find yourself making more stirred drinks than shaken ones.

Pug! Muddler
You can't make a mojito without a muddler. This one is on the large side, so it feels like a baseball bat in your hand, and gives you nice control over what you're mashing at the bottom of a glass. Remember: Be firm but gentle. You want to bring out the essential oils of mint, not bruise it into a limp green mess.

Ice Cube Trays
Those perfect cubes you see in better cocktail joints usually come from something called a Kold Draft machine. You could install one in your home—it'll put you back a couple of thousand—or you could get the next best thing, these silicone ice cube trays. They stack neatly in tall drinks like a gin rickey, and the larger two-inch square cubes work well for whiskey on the rocks. You'll never go back to using your freezer's oddly shaped ice again.

Channel Knife
If a recipe calls for a twist of citrus peel, this is the tool you'll need to make it. Other than being pretty, twists often add crucial aromatics to the cocktail. Sure, you could ignore the garnish and your drink will be fine, but chances are the twist will make the drink better. And you want a better drink, don't you?