Home Bartending Tips

By Bridget Albert
Oprah.com | January 21, 2009

When you're throwing a cocktail party, it's essential to prepare your home bar. Here's advice on how to make sure your bar is well stocked and ready to serve:

Shop for your cocktail party the day before.
Incorporate herbs from your home garden into your cocktails to make them signature.
Follow your taste buds to the produce section of your local grocery store or farmers' market, and experiment with new fruits and veggies in your favorite classic cocktails.
Find out the history of the cocktail you are offering and share it with your friends. All bartenders are storytellers.
Make cocktails in batches. To serve a crowd, break the drink recipe into cups for a pitcher. A pitcher typically serves 20 drinks that are 4 ounces each. Multiply your ounces by two and turn into cups. Always make sure to taste as you batch for quality control. For example:

To make a margarita:
1 1/2 ounce tequila
1 ounce triple sec
2 ounces fresh sour mix

To make a batch of margaritas:
3 cups tequila
1 cup triple sec
4 cups fresh sour mix
Buy enough beer and wine. While special cocktails can be a hit, beer and wine are often what people reach for at a cocktail party. A few tips to keep in mind when shopping for wine and beer:

Each guest drinking beer will likely consume one 12 ounce bottle per hour for the duration of the party. Try buying a mix of domestic brews and local micro brews. Each guest drinking wine will likely consume one 5 ounce glass of wine per hour for the duration of the party. There are approximately five glasses of wine per bottle.
Have fun with your home bar. Cocktails like wine are meant for celebrations to create good memories with your friends and family.

Printed from Oprah.com on Wednesday, May 22, 2013