You don’t need a lot of equipment or to spend an exorbitant amount of money to make great cocktails at home. Alex Day and David Kaplan, co-authors (along with Nick Fauchald) of Death & Co: Modern Classic Cocktails, note, “You can spend an absolute fortune on any bar tool, but by and large, it’s not necessary.”
If you’re just getting into cocktails, we recommend starting with the basics: a cocktail shaker and a jigger. If you want to take your bartending skills to the next level, you should consider investing in a good mixing glass, spoon, muddler, and citrus press. Here’s a rundown of what you’ll need to set up your home bar. At the end of this guide, we’ve also included tips on how to use these tools.
The basics:
Shaker
The most essential bar tool is a cocktail shaker, which is used to shake combinations of spirits, mixers (such as juice, dairy, or egg), and ice in order to blend flavors while simultaneously chilling, aerating, and diluting the drink.
There are a variety of shakers, but the two most common types are the cobbler and Boston styles. For home use, we recommend cobbler-style shakers (which consist of a tumbler, a lid with a strainer, and a cap to cover the strainer) because they’re easier to hold and shake.
That said, cobbler shakers have a tendency to leak. Several of our experts also said their lids often get stuck, or their built-in strainers have holes that are either inefficient or too big. Finding one that avoids these pitfalls is important.
Most professionals use Boston shakers, which are made up of a large cup and a small cup that fit together. Both cups are usually metal, but sometimes bartenders use a pint glass for the smaller one.
A Boston shaker requires a little more finesse to connect and shake, and it requires a separate strainer, so we recommend it only for cocktail enthusiasts who want to avoid the pitfalls of a cobbler shaker. Regardless of which style you get, the experts we spoke with recommended getting a shaker with a 28-ounce capacity, because it’s just the right size for making two drinks.
Jigger
A jigger is a small measuring cup for portioning liquid ingredients. Although your favorite bartender may free-pour liquor right from the bottle into a shaker or mixing glass, measuring into a jigger offers much more accuracy and consistency from one drink to the next. It should have clearly labeled measurement markings and a wide opening that’s easy to pour into. Since most cocktail recipes call for quantities of 2 ounces or less, a jigger is far more practical and precise than using a full-size measuring cup or an unmarked shot glass.
Useful extras:
Strainer
If you want to use a Boston-style shaker or a mixing glass, you’ll need to get a strainer to keep ice and herbs, such as mint, out of your cocktails. The two main types are Hawthorne and julep strainers.
Most of the experts we spoke with recommend a Hawthorne strainer, which has coils of metal around its perimeter, so it fits snugly over a shaker or mixing glass and is easy to use.
Julep strainers, which are essentially wide perforated spoons with short handles, are an elegant option, but they require more skill to use. Since a julep strainer doesn’t perform any better than a Hawthorne strainer, we don’t recommend getting one, unless you want a classy tool to impress your party guests.
Mixing glass
Cocktails made entirely of alcohol or very light mixers, such as a martini or a Manhattan, should be stirred in a mixing glass instead of shaken so they don’t become foamy or cloudy. “You can use the metal mixing tin of either the cobbler or Boston shaker, or typically bartenders will use the pint mixing glass of the Boston shaker,” Robert Hess, author of The Essential Bartender’s Guide, told us. “However, a drawback of any of these is that the base of them is relatively small, and it makes it more difficult to work the ice well as you stir. For this you want to use a true mixing glass.”
A mixing glass with straight sides, a heavy base, and a pour spout is far easier to use (and it looks nicer, too). Mixing glasses are traditionally made of glass rather than metal; glass is a better insulator and allows party guests to watch the cocktail being made.
Jeffrey Morgenthaler, author of The Bar Book, notes that “a good mixing glass has to be large enough to hold the drink, and a good amount of ice.” We found that 550 mL (18.59 ounces) was the appropriate volume for making two drinks. As mentioned above, a mixing glass also requires a strainer, to keep the ice from sliding into your drinking glass.
Bar spoon
A bar spoon has a long skinny handle for reaching the bottom of a mixing glass or shaker. The small bowl of the spoon makes it easier to stir cocktails over ice. It’s also handy for scooping up garnishes, like maraschino cherries or olives, from narrow jars. Our experts said they look for bar spoons made of one continuous piece of metal, because they tend to be more durable and less likely to fall apart than those with the bowl welded to the handle.
Muddler
If you want to smash herbs, fruit, or sugar cubes for making cocktails like a mojito, you’ll need to get a muddler. Muddlers can be made from a variety of materials, but most of the pros we spoke with recommend getting a wood muddler free of varnish, lacquer, or paint that could chip into a drink.
In our research we found that 11 to 12 inches is generally a good length. Chris Tunstall, a mixologist and founder of ABarAbove.com, said, “Nearly all muddlers on the market are around 8 inches, which is fine if you’re muddling in a short glass. But if you muddle in your shaker, you run the risk of accidentally smashing your fingers on the side of the shaker. I’ve done it, it hurts!”
Most experts also recommend muddlers that have flat bottoms, rather than teeth: “Having spikes can result in over-muddling herbs like mint, resulting in a bitter cocktail,” Tunstall said. Alex Day and David Kaplan, co-authors (along with Nick Fauchald) of Death & Co: Modern Classic Cocktails, said they prefer muddlers with sharp bottom edges (rather than rounded) for digging into the corner of the glass.
Citrus press
Most of the bartenders we spoke with recommended a hand press for citrus-based cocktails. Handheld citrus reamers are messy and won’t collect the seeds, while electric citrus juicers are overkill (unless you’re preparing drinks for a crowd).
A hand press makes just the right amount of juice for a couple of drinks, and it catches most seeds while providing better aim, so the juice ends up in your shaker or drink, not all over the counter. “I prefer the unpainted metal ones because eventually that acidity from the citrus chips or flakes the paint on the metal,” said Brian Van Flandern, founder of Creative Cocktail Consultants and author of Vintage Cocktails and Craft Cocktails.
Glasses for cocktails
Most expensive, high-end glasses aren’t intended for dependable home use because they are often too fragile or have long, exaggerated stems or wacky designs. We recommend getting glassware that’s affordable, durable, and well balanced.
Avoid stemmed glassware that’s too big—unless, of course, you’re Ina Garten in quarantine (video). “Most drinks are meant to be consumed fairly quickly. There’s a short window to enjoy a drink while it’s really cold,” said Abigail Gullo, a veteran bartender. If you’re serious about cocktails, we recommend getting four styles of glassware:
- Tall glasses for fizzes and cocktails, such as a Tom Collins or Bloody Mary
- Short glasses for drinking spirits neat or on the rocks, or for cocktails, such as an old-fashioned, a margarita, or a negroni
- Stemmed glasses for cocktails served “up,” as you would a martini, a Manhattan, or a sidecar
- Shot glasses for shots or sipping spirits (like mezcal) neat
If you’re looking for wine glasses for spritz cocktails or Champagne flutes for French 75s, see our guide to the best wine and Champagne glasses.
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