What essentials are required to stock a new home bar?

1. Bar spoon, jigger, shaker, muddler, corkscrew, and fruit juicer covers tools. Triple Sec is the best $5 you can spend at the liquor store. Also keep symple syrup, bitters, vermouth, marachino cherries, and lemons/limes on hand. For booze have a go to vodka, bourbon, white rum, spiced rum, and tequila on hand. No need for expensive bottles if you're making cocktails. Save the top shelf stuff for drinking on the rocks or neat. Source: have home bar.
   — Mortimer_Snerd


2. Don't forget your glassware mate. And coasters. And those drink stirring straws. You might want some salt around for margaritas. Lots of ice. Don't forget your mixers. Sodas, orange juice, ect. Fancy book of how to make fancy cocktails. Cocktail shaker.
   — Thatonegaykid69


3. The simple answer is: whatever you enjoy. Oh sure, if you're planning to entertain a lot then have a nice selection. But start with things that you like drinking, because you will be your own bars' best customer.
   — kenmorebrian






4. Ice.
   — Oil-of-Vitriol


5. Angostura bitters. Then lots of other bitters, potentially, but start with Angostura.
   — fmoss


6. Don't buy off lists. Decide on a drink to make, look at the instructions, buy the tools and ingredients, practice making it until you're good at it, then pick another drink and start again. Eventually you'll have a full range of tools and booze with no money wasted on shit you don't need. Why stock dry vermouth if you like your martinis without it? Why bother buying a muddler until it's mojito season? Build gradually drink by drink.
   — -tiberius






7. Vodka, gin, rum, tiquila and triple sec. Yep thats is long iland ice teas here we go.
   — SoulDust2468


8. These are all great suggestions for consumables, but a good work space is really helpful: A dedicated sink is awesome, but a slosh bucket is sufficient. Have a separate trash can for empties. Shelving. All those bottles take more room than you think. Stepped shelves let you see and reach everything. Plan for twice as many bottles as you need. (Yes, you need both white and green creme de menthe.) Cutting board and 6" knife for fruit. Some handy liqueurs to have are Creme de Menthe, Creme de Cacao, Peppermint Schnapps, Peach Schnapps, Drambuie, Galliano Southern Comfort and Jaegermeister. Keep a recipe card box of your top 20 or 30 drinks. Books are great, but you'll end up making the same drinks for most people.
   — Ryclea