Essential equipment for making cocktails at home or behind the bar.
A small spray bottle used to mist spirits or bitters over a cocktail or into a glass for a rinse. Creates an even, fine distribution of aromatic ingredients with minimal liquid.
A long-handled spoon with a twisted shaft, used for stirring cocktails, layering drinks, and measuring small amounts of ingredients.
Also: cocktail spoon, mixing spoon
An electric appliance used to combine and puree ingredients, essential for frozen cocktails and drinks requiring a smooth, uniform texture.
Also: bar blender, drink mixer
A loosely woven cotton gauze fabric used for straining. In cocktails, it's essential for milk clarification and making clear cordials or shrubs. Multiple layers provide finer filtration. Coffee filters can substitute for very fine straining.
A manual or electric tool designed to extract juice from citrus fruits like lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruits for use in cocktails.
Also: Mexican elbow juicer, citrus press
A sealed container used to mix, chill, and dilute cocktails by shaking them vigorously with ice.
Also: shaker, Boston shaker
A small conical strainer with very fine mesh used for double-straining cocktails. Essential for removing ice shards, fruit pulp, and herb fragments from shaken drinks.
A small mesh strainer used in conjunction with a Hawthorne strainer to remove fine particles like ice chips, fruit pulp, and egg white foam from cocktails.
Also: tea strainer, mesh strainer
A double-sided measuring tool used to precisely measure liquid ingredients for cocktails, typically with two different capacities on each end.
Also: measure, shot measure
A canvas bag used to crush ice by hand with a mallet, creating the irregular crushed ice preferred for drinks like Juleps and Cobblers.
Also: ice bag, crushing bag
A large, heavy glass vessel used for stirring cocktails that should remain clear and silky, typically spirit-forward drinks without citrus or dairy.
Also: yarai glass, stirring glass
A pestle-like tool used to crush fruits, herbs, and sugar in the bottom of a glass or shaker to release their flavors and essential oils.
Also: pestle, masher
A small grater specifically designed for freshly grating whole nutmeg. Essential for drinks like the Brandy Alexander, Atholl Brose, and various flip cocktails.
A tool used to remove thin strips of citrus zest for garnishes and expressed oils, creating elegant twists and flavor accents for cocktails.
Also: Y-peeler, channel knife
A tapered spout inserted into liquor bottles that allows for controlled, consistent pouring and faster service.
Also: speed pourer, bottle pourer
A bar tool that separates ice and solid ingredients from the liquid cocktail when pouring into a serving glass.
Also: Hawthorne strainer, julep strainer
A stirring rod with forked branches at the end, traditionally carved from the Quararibea turbinata tree native to the Caribbean. Spun rapidly between the palms to mix and chill drinks directly in the glass.
