Food For Thought – Bar Basics

Tony_abou_ganim This week on Food For Thought, I talked about how to stock your bar at home, with The Modern Mixologist, Tony Abou-Ganim.  Tony’s website is a great source of some classic recipes, as well as links to other cocktail sites that will give you all the basic information you need (and much more) to set up a bar at home and make almost any kind of cocktail that is out there right now.  To listen to Food For Thought in streaming RealAudio, click here.

Boston_shaker This is the Boston Shaker, the classic mixing device that Tony recommends.  He likes it because you can use the glass as a receptacle for mixing the basics, and the metal part to hold the ice, applying the ice to shake the drink at the last moment.  Just make sure you have a good seal on the shaker before you start shaking!

Threepiece_shakerThis is a three-piece shaker, which most home bartenders use.  Still works just fine, with the strainer built in.

If you use the two-piece, you will need one of two strainers, the Hawthorne or the julep.  The Hawthorne is the first photo, the julep the second.

Hawthorne_strainer  Julepstrainer

Finally, at the bottom of the page, a jigger, used to make measurements, which, as a beginner, you should use, instead of freely pouring by hand.  A cocktail is almost like a baking recipe.  Just a half-ounce too much or too little could really affect the final flavour of the drink.

For more tips, make sure you listen to the program, and visit Tony’s website.  Cheers!Jigger_1   

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