Your bar at home should collect your personal taste. If you and your friends drank beer, vodka and wine and this is what should be on your shopping list. Home bars can always grow and not everyone needs to stock some of every exotic liquor on the market. Maybe you will start out with four or five items to drink in your home bar and gradually add a few different liquors and flavorful liquor or two.

Then eventually, one day you will be strolling through a liquor store and you'll pick up a small bottle of whatever it is you've been meaning to try and so your home bar continues to grow. So you see your initial purchases in the beginning should be based on what you will use the most and what you and your friends like.

Did you know that when you are stocking your bar you are better off buying in large quantities since larger bottles are generally less expensive per unit than smaller bottles? But there is no need to go overboard when making your initial purchases you should buy reasonable amounts of liquor unless, of course you are sure that you like something in particular.

If this is the case, then by all means buy as much as you want to especially if you find it for a good price. While every home bar will be slightly different than others here are some basic guidelines for a suggested shopping list for a starter bar. Of course you should make any adjustments you like and use the personalized results as your own bar stocking guidelines.

The basic home bar checklist

Liquors

1 bottle of Bourbon (750 ml)

1 bottle of Brandy (750 ml)

1 bottle of Canadian Whiskey (750 ml)

1bottle of Dry Gin (1 ¾ liters)

1 bottle of Rum (1 ¾ liters)

1 bottle of Scotch Whiskey (750 ml)

1 bottle of Tequila (1 ¾ liters)

1 bottle of Vodka (1 ¾ liters)

Liqueurs

Buy small bottles of the following:

Amaretto

Benedictine

Cream de menthe

Cream de cacao

Cointreau

Kahlúa

Triple sec

Wine and beer

2 six-packs of light beer

2 six-packs of regular beer

1 bottle of champagne or sparkling wine

1 bottle of dry vermouth

2 bottles of red wine

1 bottle of Rose wine

1bottle of sweet vermouth

2 bottles of white wine

Glassware

Collins (Tall)

Goblet

Mixing Pitcher

Rocks

Mixing utensils

Long bar spoon

These are just a view of the items that you will need to stock your basic at-home bar and don't forget the ice, I hope that you enjoy and happy mixing.