Vodka. An excellent liquor for doing shots with singing babushkas or for mixing into popular cocktails like Bloody Marys and Cosmopolitans. Vodka doesn’t have a strong color, taste, or aroma, so it makes for a perfect mixing liquor. The differences between vodka brands comes down to what they’re distilled from (potatoes, grains, sugar cane) and their texture in the mouth. Some (like Absolute) have an oily, silky texture while others (like Stolichnaya) have a watery, medicinal finish.

My go-to vodka is Grey Goose. Mixes nicely with just about anything.

You also have your pick between the different flavored and infused vodkas on the market. Personally, I stay away from flavored vodkas in my home bar. I can do my own infusing with garnishes, thank you very much.

Bourbon whiskey. An essential American whiskey for the southern gentleman. Great for sipping and classic cocktails like the Old Fashioned. Two bourbons that I recommend for the beginner mixologist are Jim Beam and Wild Turkey. Very affordable and they taste nice. At least, I think they taste nice. Also be sure to read up on how to taste whiskey.

Scotch whisky. Like Jack Donaghy, I too enjoy staring out a window, while holding a glass of scotch. It soothes the soul and assists in the thinking of deep, manly thoughts. My favorite Scotch-based cocktail is the classic Rob Roy. I suggest having a blended and single malt scotch in your home bar. Check out AoM’s guide to Scotch.

Tequila. A must-have liquor for your trips to Margarita ville. What type of tequila you stock depends on what you plan on using it for. Gold tequila is usually the cheaper type of tequila and is a great pick if you plan on using your tequila for mixed drinks. If you’d like to take your tequila straight up, you’ll want to go with this agave-based drink in its purest form — silver tequila. My favorite silver tequila is Patron.

Rum. This tasty liquor from the Caribbean is distilled from molasses. Dark rums are best for punches. Light rums are for mixing cocktails. I say start off with a light rum and add a dark rum when you have a big party where you’ll be serving punch.

Other beverages to have on hand. Before I host a party, I’ll add a bottle of wine and some craft beer to my selection. I’ll also pick-up a pack of craft sodas for my guests who are on the wagon for whatever reason. A good host is thoughtful towards all his guests.

Mixers

Again, what mixers you decide to stock will depend on the cocktails you want to make. Here are the basics:

• Club soda
• Tonic water
• Cola
• Sprite or 7-up
• Ginger ale
• Orange juice
• Cranberry juice
• Tomato juice
• Pineapple juice
• Angostura bitters (technically you don’t use bitters as a mixer — they’re to be used in splashes to add a bit of flavor to your drinks)

Garnishes

Garnishes add a bit of decorative panache to your drink. They also give you something to nibble on as you sip your drink. The type of garnish you add to a drink depends on the drink. Tequila-based cocktails often use citrus garnishes like a lime or lemon. Gin-based tonics use olives and onions. A man should never add garnishes to a Scotch. That’s sacrilege.

If you don’t have a designated bar area with a fridge, you can prepare your garnishes the day of your cocktail party.

• Cocktail olives
• Cocktail onions
• Horseradish
• Limes
• Lemons
• Tabasco sauce
• Salt
• Pepper
• Sugar
• Ice

Glassware and Other Assorted Accouterments

You’ll need the proper tools for your apothecary of invigorating elixirs. You can get pretty specific with your glassware. There are tumblers made specifically for certain cocktails. If you drink those cocktails frequently, by all means get them. But you can get by just fine without them. Here are the basics:

• Martini glasses
• Rocks glasses
• Red and white wine glasses
• Highball glasses or tall glasses
• Beer mugs and pint glasses
• Martini shaker and strainer
• Toothpicks for the olives and onions
• Napkins
• A good Mixologist recipe book. Personally, I enjoy collecting vintage cocktail recipe books. I love trying different classic cocktails, plus they look nice in my home bar. You can find reprints of many old and popular mixologist books on Amazon.com. The Professional Mixing Guide Cocktail Recipe Book from 1947 is a good one. A recipe book that I’m quite enjoying right now is Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. Also check out theVintageDrink.com. The site was started recently by a redditor who found his grandfather’s old bartender guide and posted all the recipes online. You can search by name or ingredient, so it’s quite handy.
• A collection of appropriate cocktail sipping music. You can’t go wrong with Sinatra and the other crooners. I also like to have some lounge and exotica music in the mix. Ultra Lounge has great collections of swanky lounge music.