Tools of the Trade

Aprofessional bartender’s tool kit is the secret to their complex cocktails, and if you really want to impress your guests with your at-home cocktails, having the proper tools on hand is a must. That said, sitting in front of a myriad of tools can be a little intimidating, but like any trade, the correct tools are essential to achieving the best possible outcome. Whatever that may be.

JIGGER

Starting with the basics, the jigger, or bar measure, is the measuring tool for liquids in your cocktail, usually holding around 15-30ml. You can ‘free pour’ if you like, but it’s important to measure the right quantity to ensure a correct balance of flavours in your drinks and to enjoy these drinks responsibly. Consider how easy it is to do a heavy pour and give your guests more standard drinks than they want. Plus, it’s much easier to control your recipe when making multiple cocktails.

MUDDLER

A muddler is to cocktails what a mortar and pestle is to food, and is essential for crushing up ingredients in cocktails, usually fresh fruit or herbs, to extract all those delicious oils and flavours to infuse through your cocktail. Muddlers come in a variety of different materials such as wood, plastic, stainless steel and silicone. Whichever one you choose, make sure to use something lightweight, using a heavy muddler with a weak glass is a recipe for breakage.

BAR SPOONS

You may notice several types of bar spoon through this book, as many of them have slightly different functions. At its core, a bar spoon is for measuring thicker ingredients and stirring stronger, booze-based drinks such as the Martini or Old Fashioned, although they are incredibly useful for a variety of tasks. The main type of bar spoon is the plastic or steel tipped spiral spoon, which can be used to crush soft items when a muddler isn’t on hand, to layer spirits or liqueurs, or to create a perfect lemon, lime or orange twist by wrapping peel around the spiral spoon. A fork-tipped option is convenient as fresh ingredients such as cherries or olives can be speared with one end, and stirred in with the other.

KNIFE

This one is straight forward; use a quality, sharp knife to cut your fruit, rinds, and zests for garnishing your drinks.

3-piece Cobbler Shaker

SHAKERS

Again, there are several different types of these floating around. The most common is the Boston Shaker; a classic two-piece set that has a place in every bar. The Boston Shaker consists of two parts, a wide glass and a tall metal accompaniment. Measure out your ingredients in the clear glass, add ice and shake well if necessary. You may have also seen the more classic three-piece ‘cobbler’ shaker. These are more iconic

Boston Shaker

Hawthorne Strainer

Julep Strainer

STRAINERS

There are three to choose from in this category. The most common is the Hawthorne Strainer - a flat piece of metal with a coil surrounding, that strains out ice, fruit and herbs. The spring is easy to remove, which comes in handy when you need extra froth, and is easy to manoeuvre so it fits in any shaker. The Julep Strainer, a more classic option, is solid and flat with small holes and used primarily for stirred drinks. Rumour has it the Julep Strainer was invented to protect sensitive teeth and thick moustaches from cold drinks. Finally, the Fine Strainer, or sieve, acts to remove fine particles when pouring a drink. You may come across the term ‘double strain’ in this book, and the Fine Strainer is the second element to this process, removing any ice or pulp that found its way through the first strainer.

Fine Strainer