organic appreciated but not necessary

8/5/2016 10:24:31 PM

LOL @ organic liquor

8/5/2016 11:15:45 PM

WTH is organic liquor?

8/5/2016 11:24:51 PM

Fernet.

The organic kind

8/6/2016 7:25:48 AM

Aristocrat gin, Aristocrat vodka, Aristocrat rum, makers mark

8/6/2016 10:03:02 AM

All the Bourbon

8/6/2016 10:38:23 AM

SoCo and Rumple Minze

8/6/2016 1:11:42 PM

beer

8/6/2016 1:49:37 PM

I'll keep this pretty general so you can customize as you want.

What you need to do is figure out what kind of home bar you want it to be.

Are you going to be the primary user or is it really just there for entertaining when guests show up? If it's more for you, then start by stocking spirits that you like. Get the stuff you like first, then consider adding the stuff you don't like afterwards.

Are those guests the type that drink bud light and just like to get hammered or actually appreciate the good stuff? If you have friends that like to get hammered, don't stock the good stuff. Keep some of the bottom/low tier liquors there to use for that purpose. Keep some of the good stuff for yourself too, just make sure to let your bar showcase the liquor appropriately based on the guests that are coming over. I'm not going to let my friends pound back the 20 year aged rum, especially if just one person is capable of drinking half the bottle. That's what Captain Morgan is for.

Do you want to stock liquors to make a small selection of drinks, or do you want more flexibility to concoct any number of different cocktails? If you're trying to expand what you can make, slowly add the liquors and adders that add complexity to a drink. Get some syrups (or better yet, make your own) and some bitters.

Half the fun is in the experimentation. Go buy whatever you feel like. Buy it because it's expensive. Buy it because the bottle looks pretty. Buy it because it ranked highly in some competition.

Taste is subjective. You don't need advice, just grab what you want and go from there. Just have a strategy in mind so you don't regret what your bar looks like after you've put hundreds or even thousands into it.

8/6/2016 4:26:19 PM

mildew might know.

message_topic.aspx?topic=640714

8/6/2016 7:15:47 PM

^^
quality post, B.

8/7/2016 9:23:41 AM

Raleigh Rum Company White Rum and Spiced Rum.

8/7/2016 11:59:04 AM

I noticed you don't have online ordering/shipping. I'm not in NC but would love to get some. You should sell cases on amazon or something to expand your market. Young professionals who moved away would probably be your best customers.

8/7/2016 1:31:01 PM

I hardly ever drink liquor but if I had a home bar for other people I'd probably go with a good mix of stuff with some top and some bottom depending on the guests and the drinks.

Ketel One Vodka and a well vodka.
Bombay Sapphire and/or Beefeater gin.
Raleigh Rum Company white rum
Meyers Dark rum
Johnny Walker or whatever Scotch you want
Knob Creek or your favorite bourbon. Maybe a cheaper brand too - something like Evan Williams for bourbon and cokes.
Then a few specialty bottles like Jager, Fireball, Malibu, Triple Sec, Bailey's, etc.
And some mixers or maybe bitters if you want to be fancy.

At that point you're probably already up to $300 or so, if not more depending on what you choose.

8/7/2016 7:44:11 PM

Just buy shit you'll drink.

You gonna ask how to stock your fridge next?

8/7/2016 9:43:04 PM

Don't forget your liqueurs and bitters if you're going to be making any sort of cocktails/mixed drinks. Me, I was a whiskey ginger girl, but you might want to experiment with making those $12 cocktails.

8/8/2016 10:35:02 AM

I'm a gin drinker but fucking LOL at keeping more than one kind of gin in your home cabinet.

8/8/2016 11:18:33 AM

Mid-to-high grade for the basics. You don't want to go overboard, but you don't want to serve rail liquor to guests.

Vodka - Titos or Ketel (Titos is better and cheaper)
Gin - Tanqueray
Rum - use t-dub guy's stuff I guess. I would if I was in Raleigh. I use Cruzan for white and Striped Pig's spice rum (they're local). And try to have a dark rum on hand for Dark and Stormy
Tequila - Camarena for cheap maragaritas. Espolon for mid-grade offerings. Tres Amigos for sipping/shooting.
Bourbon - A good affordable one that I keep around is Larceny. But there are a ton of options out there.
Scotch - Glenlivet or Dewars

8/8/2016 11:32:03 AM

Just looked at my bar and this is what we have currently. Hope it helps for inspiration purposes.

Bourbon: Blanton's, Bib & Tucker, Larceny, Old Grand Dad
Tequila: Avion, Don Julio Reposado
Vodka: Smirnoff 1.75L (we go through way to much vodka to worry about buying expensive stuff)
Rum: Raleigh Rum White
Scotch: Glenfiddich 15
Other: Cointreau, Kahlua

8/8/2016 2:07:05 PM

^forgot tequila. I knew there was one major family of liquor I was missing.

8/8/2016 3:09:43 PM

Quote :

"I noticed you don't have online ordering/shipping. I'm not in NC but would love to get some. You should sell cases on amazon or something to expand your market. Young professionals who moved away would probably be your best customers. "

harder than it seems, we've been trying to pilot an online distributor, but every case has gotten smashed.

8/9/2016 10:50:38 AM

Quote :

"I'm a gin drinker but fucking LOL at keeping more than one kind of gin in your home cabinet."

Are we back in college or something? There are pretty notable differences in different types of gin and there is nothing wrong with having some variety. Especially considering I don't drink like an undergrad a bottle can last quite a while.

8/9/2016 11:59:27 AM

not to mention there are people you'd give the expensive stuff to and people who can't tell the difference so why wouldn't you have bottom shelf or other brands?

8/9/2016 12:12:46 PM

Why are you putting shit you don't intend to share in your cabinet in the first place?

8/9/2016 12:50:10 PM

A lot depends on the kind of socializing involved. If you're going to be having big house parties, I think it's reasonable to have a tier of stuff that isn't for sharing. Nobody goes to that sort of event expecting top-shelf shit, and it's not economical to have enough for a crowd. That's all understandable. Of course, you also shouldn't be partaking of the fancy shit in front of everybody if you aren't willing to share.

I guess the assumption is that most of us are reaching an age where we don't really throw ragers anymore, in which case there really isn't an excuse for having a bunch of drinks that are off-limits to guests. You can afford to share in these smaller settings, and since people are (presumably) not just there to get shit-housed they want to enjoy quality.

---

"Organic liquor" seems stupid to me. So does "gluten-free," but increasingly I've found myself being forced to deal with that among my acquaintances. Given what little I know about you, I'm going to assume that you're the type of person who is sensitive to the "needs" of people who claim some level of gluten intolerance. So I suggest googling appropriate liquors and making sure to include some of those.

8/9/2016 1:29:59 PM