‘Tis (nearly) the season to be merry! And I don’t know about you, but we take cocktail hour quite seriously at Kalinko HQ, and the difference between a good cocktail and a great cocktail is a well-stocked bar. If like us, you’re planning on channelling Mad Men this Christmas, this is the definitive home bar how-to guide.
Ice ice baby
Nobody likes a luke-warm cocktail. For ice-cold drinks that stay cold, cubes must be chunky and clink reassuringly in your tumbler long after that first satisfying sip. And to save endless trips to the freezer, house them in a chic ice bucket next to the bottles.
Garnishes
It's time to up your garnish game. We're talking wedges of citrus, long slithers of cucumber, or if you’re feeling a bit adventurous, a spring of singed rosemary or a slither of orange peel.
The Good Stuff
Nobody is expecting you to have blue curaçao or four types of tequila, but there’s something very cool about being able to rustle up a decent cocktail at the drop of a hat. Good quality gin, vodka, whiskey and perhaps Campari and rum will ensure you can knock up most of the classics when the need arises. And it’s always fun to have a bottle of something sweet and naughty as an after dinner treat – toffee vodka anyone?
Glasses
On the whole, we’re not sticklers for tradition, but there are some rules that are not made to be broken. Martinis need to be in a martini glass, champagne does not taste the same in a tumbler and gin and tonics need to be big. We didn’t make the rules, but we certainly won’t be breaking these ones.
