Five Unique Bar Accessories to Impress Your Guests

During an evening at home with friends and family, where the drinks flow and the conversation lasts long into the night, the spotlight invariably falls on the home bar. Whether entertaining al fresco during the summer months or whipping up cocktails to take the edge off a cold winter’s night, a functional bar set-up elevates every occasion.

Adding a sense of theatre to your cocktail parties and dinners, what could be better to impress guests? To take your home bar to the next level, we’ve rounded up a few of our favourite pieces of bar equipment and accessories. Get ready to raise a toast with our home bar essentials.

Stylish Home Bar Equipment

A home bar may look great, but if you don’t have the right equipment, you can’t deliver the perfect serve. Having a few essentials can help you keep you guests refreshed with their favourite tipples.

Bottle Opener or Corkscrew

Wine and beer are some of the most common and quickest drinks to serve. Having heavy duty bottle openers and corkscrews will help you open hundreds of caps and corks with no problems. Waiter’s corkscrews are a favourite for their all-round versatility, although a unique or hi-tech design will create an exciting talking point.

Jiggers

To maximise taste and minimise the likelihood of guests overdoing it, jiggers help you get exact measurements for spirits and other ingredients. One side measures a UK standard double and the other a single, so you can easily create your mixed drinks and cocktails according to a recipe or your guests’ tastes.

Wine Coolers, Decanters and Stoppers

If white, red or rose are among your top serves, then having these essential wine serving and storage tools will enhance the whole experience. Coolers help keep your white and rose at the right temperature, decanters will help air get to your red and stopper can be used to keep still or fizzy wine in optimum condition for longer.

Ice Makers, Moulds and Buckets

Whether your guests enjoy a refreshing cocktail, a favourite liquor on the rocks or want to give chilled wine an extra boost, ice is an essential for every home bar. Get a machine maker for instant cooling or different-shaped moulds to keep in your freezer. Transport and keep this on the bar in a stylish ice bucket, complete with tongs for handling.

Chopping Board, Juicer and Peeler

Limes, lemons, grapefruit, whole spices or herbs are all delicious fresh additions to a range of drinks. Having a chopping board, peeler, knife and juicer on hand means you can create slices, wedges, fresh squeezes and garnishes in a moment. This is essential for delivering serves that look and taste great.

Serveware

Having a few extra pieces of serveware will make it easier to wait on multiple guests at once. A jug can come in handy when making cocktails that are often served in pitchers, such as Pimm’s or sangria. Consider a tray for taking drinks from one room to the other, as well as coasters and napkins for pre-empting spillages and protecting furniture.

Must-Have Cocktail Accessories

Once you’ve got comfortable and efficient at the basic serves, you might fancy adding a few cocktail accessories to your home bar set-up. Here’s the essentials most mixologists can’t live without.

Shaker

Nothing gives the impression that you know your way around a bar quite like a cocktail shaker. Even if you’re still training in mixology, a professional set will create the illusion that you’re a master maker. You could even teach your guests how to use it in a fun session that doubles as entertainment.

Strainer

Using a fine mesh or Hawthorne strainer will stop large chunks of ice and other ingredients from ruining the drinking experience. Often brought as part of a shaker set, as you advance on your mixology journey, you’ll find strainers increasingly become part of your happy hour toolkit.

Bar Spoon

You might think your kitchen tablespoons can do the job, but a bar spoon is specifically designed to blend ingredients together. The long, spiralled handle can reach deep into even tall glasses and makes it easy to blend or fold your drinks according to the recipe. The spoon can also be used to measure out around 5ml of ingredients.

Muddler

Crush herbs, fruits and sugars with ice or liquids easily with this specially-made tool. The grooved head and heavy handle make it easier to bash, bruise and break down ingredients. You can get designs made of wood or metal to match your bar’s own scheme.

Whether your guests’ drink of choice is a full-bodied merlot, a whisky on the rocks or a Piña Colada, having the appropriate glassware for every tipple will ensure everyone gets the best drinking experience.

To make sure everyone’s needs are covered, ensure you’ve got the following at hand:

• Wine glasses that are designed to suit your preferred vino style or are appropriate for red, white or rose
• Champagne glasses or flutes that elevate every special occasion or toast
• Cocktail glasses will get anyone excited about your serve, especially when garnished
• Tumblers are perfect for serving spirits straight or on the rocks and work beautifully as water glasses
• Tall or highball glasses will make soft drinks or standard spirit mixers feel special
  

Whether you store your glasses on a shelf or in a rack, make sure they’re secure, aren’t touching each other and are regularly polished to keep them clean, tidy and safe.

Sophisticated Carts or Cabinets

If your treasured bottles are currently gathering dust in the kitchen, it’s time for a serious upgrade. A drinks station or home bar would be perfect for those who love to entertain, plus they make for stylish additions to dining or sitting rooms.

For those seeking a truly impressive set-up, we’d recommend a specialist drinks or wine cabinet. This is a stylish piece of furniture which can house all of your bar accessories, glassware and drinks. A drinks trolley is a fun addition to cocktail parties. Load it up with your best barware and wheel it out when happy hour begins.

Get Your Bar Set Up for Service

Once you’ve gathered all the right bar equipment and accessories together, it’s time to stock your bar with wine, spirits and mixers. Having storage racks and a fridge nearby will be essential for keeping all your drinks and ingredients in the right condition.

With this and all of the essential home bar tools at your disposal, you’ll be on track to create a memorable experience for your guests. All that’s left to do is gather your nearest and dearest and raise a toast to time spent together.