A useful home bar starts with the drinks you want to make. If your usual order is an Old Fashioned, your first tools will look a little different from those of someone who loves Margaritas. You can build either setup with a few well-chosen pieces and add more as you try new drinks.
This guide covers the home bar essentials for stirred cocktails, shaken drinks, and simple drinks built in the glass. Explore BevZap's barware collection as you put together a setup that fits your favorites.
Which Bar Tools Do You Need?
A jigger for measuring is a useful starting point for almost any cocktail. After that, choose your mixing tools and serving glasses based on the drinks you make most.
| Your favorite drinks | Start with these tools | Serving glass |
|---|---|---|
| Old Fashioneds | Jigger and bar spoon; add a mixing glass and strainer if mixing separately | Rocks glass |
| Margaritas, Daiquiris, and Whiskey Sours | Jigger and cocktail shaker; a separate strainer for a two-tin shaker | Rocks or stemmed cocktail glass, depending on the recipe |
| Classic Martinis and Manhattans | Jigger, mixing glass, bar spoon, and strainer | Stemmed cocktail glass, or a rocks glass when serving over ice |
| Highballs and simple mixed drinks | Jigger and bar spoon | Tall glass with room for ice and mixer |
These are starting points, not complete recipe lists. You'll also need the ingredients, ice, and any garnish-preparation tools called for by the drink you choose.
For Old Fashioneds: Measure, Stir, and Serve
An Old Fashioned is a good example of how little equipment you need to get started. When using a recipe with syrup, you can measure the ingredients into a rocks glass, add ice, and stir right in the serving glass. A sugar-cube recipe may call for an additional tool to crush and dissolve the sugar.
A Japanese Jigger helps you measure consistently. That matters because a little extra syrup or spirit can noticeably change the balance of a short cocktail. Check the jigger's markings against your recipe rather than assuming every end or fill line is the same measure.
A long bar spoon gives you reach and control while stirring around the ice. Finish with a rocks glass that has enough space for your preferred cube and garnish.
If you like to mix the drink separately and strain it over fresh ice, add a mixing glass and strainer. It's a useful option, but you don't have to buy both before making your first Old Fashioned.
Browse personalized rocks glasses if you'd like your everyday cocktail glass to carry initials, a family name, or a design for your home bar.
For Margaritas and Sours: Choose a Cocktail Shaker
Margaritas, Daiquiris, and Whiskey Sours are commonly shaken with ice. Shaking combines the ingredients while chilling and diluting the drink, and it adds a different texture from stirring. A shaker and jigger are the core tools for this group of cocktails.
Cobbler shaker: a built-in strainer
The Cobbler Cocktail Shaker has three pieces: the body, a top with an integrated strainer, and a removable cap. BevZap's version holds 24 oz. and is made from 304 stainless steel.
The built-in strainer means you can pour without buying a separate primary strainer. If a recipe calls for fine straining to catch small ice fragments or pulp, that is a separate step requiring a fine-mesh strainer.
Two-tin shaker: pair it with a strainer
A Polished Shaking Tin Set gives you the two-piece style often used behind a cocktail bar. The tins fit together for shaking and separate for pouring.
Pair this style with a Hawthorne strainer to hold back the ice as you pour. Check that your strainer fits the tin you plan to use. You only need one shaker style to begin; choose the arrangement you find comfortable to handle and clean.
For Martinis and Manhattans: Build a Stirring Setup
Classic spirit-forward Martinis and Manhattans are usually stirred with ice, then strained into the serving glass. Stirring chills and dilutes the drink with less aeration than shaking.
A dedicated Yarai Mixing Glass gives you a vessel for that step. Combine it with your jigger, bar spoon, and a strainer that fits its opening. The jigger and spoon can be the same ones you use for other drinks.
When choosing a mixing glass, look at its capacity, stability, and pouring spout. Leave enough room for both the liquid and the ice to move while you stir. A glass that holds one finished cocktail by volume may still be too small to mix it comfortably with ice.
Follow the recipe's serving instructions: a drink served “up” is strained into a glass without ice, while a drink served on the rocks goes over ice. That choice affects which serving glass you need.
For Highballs: Keep the Setup Simple
Whiskey soda and other highballs can be built directly in a tall glass. A jigger helps with the spirit measure, and a bar spoon lets you combine the drink gently after adding your mixer.
You don't need a shaker for this setup. Add carbonated mixers directly to the serving glass rather than shaking them in a sealed tin.
Choose Glassware for the Drinks You Actually Make
Start with a few glasses you will use regularly. Rocks glasses suit short cocktails and pours over ice. Tall glasses leave room for longer drinks. Stemmed cocktail glasses suit many drinks served without ice.
If whiskey tasting is also part of your routine, a Glencairn fills a different role from a cocktail tumbler. Our guide to choosing a custom whiskey glass explains the differences between tasting, rocks, and highball styles.
A small engraved set can also make a thoughtful housewarming or anniversary gift. Choose the shape around the recipient's favorite drink, then add the personal detail.
Build Your Home Bar a Few Pieces at a Time
Before buying a large set, pick two or three drinks you'd like to learn and list the tools they share. A jigger and bar spoon work across many recipes. Add a shaker for shaken cocktails or a mixing glass and strainer for drinks you prefer to stir separately.
Check what you already have in the kitchen, too. A measuring tool with clear markings, a suitable citrus juicer, a peeler, and an ice tray may already cover part of your setup. Specialty serving pieces can come later as your drink list grows.
For care, follow each product's instructions. Don't assume that every metal finish or glass component has the same dishwasher requirements. Clean your tools after use and let them dry before storing them.
Start with the drink you want to make next. Shop BevZap barware for the measuring, shaking, stirring, and straining tools that will earn a place in your home bar.
