Start with the spirits, not the gadgets

It's tempting to buy a jigger, a shaker, and a bar spoon before you've bought a single bottle. Do it the other way around — the spirits are what actually unlock recipes. Here's what each core bottle gets you, with a free recipe to prove it.

Gin

The single most useful bottle in a home bar. Makes the Negroni (30 ml Gin, 30 ml Campari, 30 ml Sweet vermouth, stirred), the Dry Martini, the Gimlet, and a long list of gin sours.

Whiskey (Bourbon)

Makes the Old Fashioned (60 ml Bourbon, 10 ml Simple syrup, 2 dashes Angostura bitters, stirred over ice) and the Whiskey Sour — the two drinks most people learn to make first.

White Rum

Makes the Daiquiri (60 ml White rum, 25 ml Lime juice, 20 ml Simple syrup, shaken) and the Mojito — both three or four ingredients, both genuinely great.

Tequila

Makes the Margarita (50 ml Tequila, 25 ml Lime juice, 20 ml Triple sec, shaken) — one bottle, one classic, endlessly good.

Vodka

The most neutral base — makes the Moscow Mule (50 ml Vodka, 22 ml Fresh lime juice, 120 ml Ginger beer, built in a copper mug) and the Vodka Martini.

Dry vermouth & Sweet vermouth

Not spirits, but essential modifiers — 10 ml of dry vermouth turns gin into a Martini; sweet vermouth is a third of a Negroni. Buy small bottles and keep them refrigerated once opened; vermouth is wine, not spirit, and it goes flat.

Angostura bitters

A few dashes transform an Old Fashioned and dozens of other drinks. A single small bottle lasts a very long time.

See what you can make right now

Sakaba's "Ready in your bar" view checks what you own against the full recipe library and shows exactly what's makeable — add these eight and watch the number climb.