Unique Essentials for The Home Bar
January 10, 2008 by Tracey Thompson
Filed under Recipes
Some greats of the fashion, mixology and culinary arts got together and threw a party at the home of Scott Morrison. He does an incredible job with his line of jeans, but take a look at his bar (pictured above). Food & Wine was on hand for the pictorial and lends some advice on unique mixers and spirits.
Essentials for the Home Bar
Just as chefs love exotic spices and rare produce, mixologists seek out obscure spirits and mixers. A bar stocked with these unusual spirits allows the amateur bartender to create ambitious cocktails at home.
Barolo Chinato
This spicy, wine-based digestif contains quinine, which is what gives tonic water its bitterness.
Carpano Antica Formula
This sweet Italian vermouth is a more robust, full-bodied alternative to standard vermouth like Martini & Rossi.
Chartreuse V.E.P.
A complex French liqueur that’s aged much longer than regular Chartreuse, giving it a mellower, more integrated flavor.
Fernet-Branca Amaro
Mixologists like to add this intensely flavored Italian herbal digestif to drinks in small doses, in place of bitters.
Laird’s Bonded Apple Jack
Bartenders love the intense appley flavor of this pure, 100-proof brandy.
Lucid Absinthe
Now that the U.S. ban on absinthe has been relaxed, this sweet American brand will be key to a resurgence in anise-flavored cocktails.
Rhum Clémont Créole Shrubb
A rum-based, orange liqueur that is a more complex substitute for triple sec.
St-Germain
This elderflower-based liqueur smells like spring and tastes like summer, adding a floral bouquet and tropical flavors to cocktails.
Velvet Falernum
A sweet liqueur from Barbados flavored with lime and spices, it’s great in tropical drinks like the mojito.
I’ve always wanted a cool bar setup. My spare cupboard I use for liquor can only hold so much. I envy anyone that has the space for a proper bar.
Thanks for the tips. I have really been enjoying having Lucid and Laird’s on the shelf. They make for some excellent variations on the Sazerac and Manhattan. I would never have picked these up and experimented with the old recipes had it not been for Dave Wondrich’s new book, Imbibe!.
By the way, does anyone know where the heck I can find Carpano Formula Antica in NYC? I’ve been looking all over. I been told LeNell’s carried it in the past, but they haven’t had any in quite a while.