Since millennials are all well in our 20s/30s now, we’re favoring dinner parties, brunches, and BBQs over the bar scene. Many of us much prefer a night in with a bottle of wine instead of a night surrounded by strangers where we can’t hear our friends + drinks are overpriced. As we’re being driven more and more to lowkey nights at each other’s homes, we’re realizing more + more how ill-equipped our homes are for gatherings. I mean, I’m not because I’m a hostess junkie whose grandmother has a shopping problem resulting in decor + dishes for almost any occasion. But the rest of you are struggling. Luckily, I am here to help! The first step to having a home ready to host at a moments notice is making sure you have proper stock in your bar.
While stocking your bar is a personal endeavor – you spend the most time there after all – it is also a way to show your friends + family you have your life at least a little bit together. When it comes to what to stock in your bar, you may be a little lost. You want to have things you like, but you also need to have a few basics. Whether you’re starting from scratch or have some items as a base, here’s what you’ll need to stock in your bar:
What to Stock in Your Bar
- Your favorite liquor
- Your favorite wine
- Champagne
- Red + white wine
- Assorted beer
- Regular vodka
- Flavored vodka (I prefer vanilla/whipped)
- Gin
- Whiskey
- Rum
- Tequila
- Simp syrup/triple sec
- Any liqueur from your favorite cocktail
- Club soda
- Coke
- Tonic Water
- Ice bucket
- Cute ice molds
- Paper straws
- Shaker + strainer
- Muddler
- Blender
- Corkscrew + bottle opener
- Shot glasses
- Highball glasses
- Small tumbler glasses
- Wine glasses*
- Champagne flutes
- Beer glasses
Most of the things on this list have a pretty good shelf life. There are, however, a few other items that you’ll need to keep as at the ready as possible. Other things you’ll need to stock in your bar include lemon, limes, mint, orange juice, cocktail olives or onions. Personally, my cocktails don’t require much produce, so I can buy these items as needed. However, if you have friends with very particular tastes that won’t settle for wine or beer, you may want to keep those things on hand if they spend a lot of time in your home.
Just having these basic items in your liquor cabinet or on your bar cart will make you seem not just like a real, functional adult, but a fancy one. You can build the stock in your bar over time! If you’re worried about the price remember, Costco + Target are your friends. Check out this post for more tips on how to stock your bar on a budget.
*The experts say you need to have both white + red wine glasses. As someone whose wine glasses mostly just have cute sayings on them, I disagree. BUT if you’re a wino or too good to drink wine out of a glass that fits an entire bottle, at least get glasses that fit your taste. Rosé tastes good out of any glass 💁🏻♀️.
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