Liquors

There are a lot of liquor choices out there. So many in fact, that if you’re just starting out, it can be overwhelming. This is why you should just keep things as simple as possible when you first get up and running. Since you’ll be using your bar for you most of the time, just stick with what you know you like.

Three or four liquors to start will do. For me, my favorites are rum, gin, tequila, and bourbon. I have expanded since to include a few other things. For example, I’m not a big vodka drinker, but I have now included a bottle for entertaining. There are advantages and disadvantages to each choice–tequila, for example has far fewer options for mixing than rum does–but then again, you can’t make a margarita with gin or vodka. There are many mixing options for whiskey, but as popular as bourbon is now in the U.S., having a bottle to drink from straight or on the rocks is more than acceptable.

For further in-depth advice, there is an excellent book entitled The 12 Bottle Bar, written by David Solmonson and Lesley Jacobs Solmonson. The genius of this book is that it provides guidance for building your bar from the ground up with only a single bottle, two bottles, three bottles, all the way up to as many as the title suggests. Ultimately, there’s a full list of twelve liquors to provide an infinite number of combinations. There are also plenty of drink recipes, detailed equipment lists, and lots of tips. Published in 2015, it’s fairly popular and not difficult to find.

Beer

The home bar typically centers around liquors and mixology, but we can’t neglect that beverage of fermented hoppiness. After all, ales were a staple of the Golden Age period as well. Picking a brand like Rogue Dead Guy or Heavy Seas is good and festive for the pirate bar theme, but otherwise, stock what you like mostly, and keep a little variety for entertaining. For example, I like craft ales and microbrews and new things to try, but I like to keep a couple bottles of Yuengling and Corona which have pretty general appeal. A couple cans of something cheap, like Pabst or Coors, for guests helps for entertaining. My dad likes hard cider, so I also keep a couple bottles of some Angry Orchard.

Now, if you’re really enterprising, or perhaps if you’re fortunate enough to have a large permanent bar, you could maintain a keg for some fresh pouring. Nothing beats that “fresh on tap” taste. But for the many of us who keep a small corner bar wedged somewhere between the living room and kitchen, get yourself a mini fridge and keep some cold ones in stock.

Wine

Besides rum, wine also kept well in barrels on ships and was frequently consumed by our Golden Age sailors. Generally at a minimum, keep a good bottle of red and a good bottle of white in stock. If you’re a fan of the mimosa, you’ll want to keep a bottle of champagne handy too. For me, I always like trying new wines, so I always have something fresh and different in stock. Don’t forget to keep a corkscrew handy. Check out the “Essential Tools” section for an image of that awesome pirate-themed bar multi-tool, which is a must-have for any pirate bar.