5 Essential Bar Tips - for beginners and up!

In today's video we're getting back to bar basics! Here are my 5 essential tips to better your bartending! I'm addressing some questions I've received regarding citrus, glassware, storage, organization, and tasting. You may already be using some of these practices behind your bar - in which case, this will be a friendly reminder you're doing it right. For everyone else, these are eas tips to keep in mind as you expand upon your bartending skills! I appreciate the questions I get from all of you who mix along or simply enjoy the videos. Cheers to you, and happy mixing!

Video/editing/illustrations by Azusa Inaba 🎥 🎨

TIME STAMPS
Intro: 0:00
Dr. Squatch: 0:35
Tip 1 - Citrus: 1:38
Tip 2 - Glassware: 3:02
Tip 3 - Vermouth: 4:54
Tip 4 - Tidy Up: 5:57
Tip 5 - Taste Everything: 7:43

MY TOOLS FOR THE BAR

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Anders Erickson
4610 N. Clark St
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[AndersErickson]

Simple things to keep in mind. What tips would you add?

[johnnysimes]

Another good tip: Prep the garnish first. No fun having your drink warm up and the ice melt at the end while making the garnish. Thx to Cara Devine on that one.

[hamishmcarthur]

Don't be afraid! Try swapping ingredients around. Instead of Orange Curaçao try Blue. Being a home bartender is all about fun with friends. I love making colourful cocktails because they are fun. That's the most important thing about being a home bartender; have fun with your guests. The great thing about an Anders video is that it is always fun, never pretentious.

[ZHL]

Definitely second the tip about cleaning bottles, especially the rims of twist-offs. Was making an aviation a while back and made an absolute fool of myself trying to open my friggin bottle of creme de violette, because the sugar had crystallized under the cap and gotten stuck.

[ScareCrow]

I've been watching bartender on YT for over a year now and trying to decide if I wanted to try to start a home bar. I discovered you yesterday and your videos for beginners have helped me decide that I am going to start my home bar today when I get off work.

[Anonneemuss]

I bought a bar fridge just for my vermouths, hand-stuffed olives, syrups, and other more perishables!

My own tip: Write on the vermouth bottle the date that you opened it. Just so you know when it's probably near/past its prime.

[tsherman]

My tip: don't skip the garnishes! It's worth the extra time/effort!

They might be "just" for presentation on food, but with cocktails, the aroma of fresh citrus, the reward of a booze-soaked cocktail cherry, or the sight and smell of a few dashes of bitters on top of an egg-foam sour can't be understated!

Humans perceive taste largely through smell, so it's important not to neglect the smell of the top of the drink.

[jacobcrabtree]

Mise en place is probably the best tip I've ever learned not just behind the bar, but for anything in the kitchen. Part of my mise en place process is that I never assume I have any ingredient until I have put it in front of me and I'm ready to start mixing. No one wants to find out they're out of maraschino only after pouring the lime juice, gin, and chartreuse into the shaker. Nor do we want to pick up a suspiciously-light bag of flour after already creaming the butter, sugar, and eggs when making cookies. Gather your ingredients and tools, prep, measure, then start mixing.

Thanks for another great vid!

[sentientsandwich]

I have been fine-dining bartending for two years and learn more here than on the job. I had above-average knowledge from being in the industry for 10 years, but you helped fill in the gaps, especially Tikki 🍍😀

[yvanleivacastro]

Another tip: I wrote in my personal notebook every recipe that I use and for each recipe an alternative for the ingredients (if it's possible of course) in case of you know... shortage or just sillyness. :D Also, I wrote alternatives for the glass, with little tips like "You can use an old fashioned glass and put ice cubes, but shake during a shorter time to balance the dilution provoked by the ice cube". Kind of stuff. I wrote everything so even my friends can use the recipes. :D

[AlfonsoVallarta]

Added to keeping things organised; keep them handy. Nothing is worse than making a chore out of something that should be relaxing. Brilliant tips, the lot of them.

[cfhollister]

I don't know if this counts as the kind of tip you're looking for. But when I started getting serious about tending bar at home, I spent most of of my initial research working out my "workhorse" spirits... Finding those bottles that are not high-end spirits but are the best value for money. I learned about bonded ("bottled in bond") spirits and made whiskies like Old Grandad, Old Overholt, and Rittenhouse my workhorses. I learned that big name-brand spirits like Jameson or Bacardi Silver can be not great (to put it mildly) and finding better standard replacements like Power's Gold Label or Plantation 3 Star, respectively. Same applies to some of the most basic liqueurs. A Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao or Luxardo Triplum is a huge step up from bottom-shelf triple sec. The very best spirits, more often than not, are meant to be enjoyed neat or with a bare minimum of tinkering. When it comes to cocktails where you're mixing different flavours, it really ups your game when you find the workhorse spirits that really represent the category with a touch of quality but without a hefty price tag.

[angelaarsenault]

Just left my corporate job to learn bartending and I just found your channel the other day and subscribed. I can't thank you enough for all this amazing info!!

[jamieprince]

Great tips, Anders! One from me: freezing carton egg whites and less-used fresh juices (e.g. pineapple, grapefruit) in 1oz cubes in silicone trays, then storing frozen cubes in date-labeled ziplocs, so you're not caught without... no need to defrost before adding to shaker tin.

[Soundpolitic]

An awesome video! Tips I wish I had years ago when I began running a home bar. I only have two additions with regard to vermouth and bitters.

Regarding vermouth, these last even longer if you use wine preserving vacuum stoppers and pumps. If you diligently purge the air out of the vermouth after every single pour, the vermouths will last for several months because they won't oxidize as quick. I've had bottles live nearly half a year and still be good for mixing, which meant that I could feel fine about purchasing a full-sized bottle of something that gets used rarely (like, say, a blanc vermouth, which isn't called for that often).

Regarding bitters, these should be smelled and tasted on their own, yes. A good way to get the aromas is to dash them into your palms of your hand, rub them together, then sniff away. For tasting, it is good to give them a small taste on their own, but this can be overpowering for the taste buds. So I always make a simple Bitters & Soda, usually just a few dashes in a shot glass filled with plain seltzer. That gives a good assessment of how the bitters taste with their flavors lengthened out in a mixture, which is how bitters get used, after all.

[WeeklyBlend]

If I recall correctly, Liquid Intelligence mentioned that people tended to prefer citrus juice at the "age" that they were used to having it. People who worked at a bar enjoyed juice that had aged a while, but people who usually have it fresh from the fruit prefer it that way.

[jaypal]

Back in January I came across one of your old fashioned videos. A month later I began a home bar. 7 months later, I'm the family bartender. Love your style

[DasJorge]

Love keeping your bar and tools clean. First lesson I taught any bartender at my place was "A clean bar is a happy bar. And what is a dirty bar? UNACCEPTABLE!"

Love the videos. Ever think of doing one on barrel aging cocktails?

[Sgt_Kal]

As someone who will be taking over an F&B management position, with emphasis on the bar, at an event ranch, these videos are incredibly helpful. Thank you so much, Anders, for making them and sharing your wealth of knowledge. I really appreciate the effort you have put into this channel and videos.

[SirZorgulon]

On the last point on tasting everything, this is a really great idea with bitters. I didn’t really have a sense of what distinguished Angostura v Peychaud’s v Regan’s v Boker’s bitters until I tasted them side by side. It really helps you pick the right bitters for the job when making an old fashioned, or experimenting with a new cocktail.