Stocking Your Bar: The Spirits Buying Guide

Spirits are the largest investment in your home bar, and the selection can be paralyzing. This guide gives you concrete recommendations at every price tier and a strategy for building a well-rounded collection without blowing your budget all at once.

How to Think About Value

The most expensive bottle is not always the best cocktail spirit. In fact, subtle flavors that make a whiskey remarkable for sipping can be completely overwhelmed when combined with citrus, sweeteners, and mixers. The best cocktail spirits are assertive, characterful, and priced for mixing.

The general rule: use your mid-shelf spirits for cocktails and save the good stuff for sipping. A $60 single malt scotch disappears into a highball. A $25 blended scotch that knows what it is does the same job beautifully.

Whiskey

Value Tier ($15–$30)

• Evan Williams Black Label Bourbon ($15) — Overdelivers dramatically at this price. Legitimate caramel and vanilla character that holds up in an Old Fashioned.
• Old Forester 86 Proof ($25) — The archetypal bourbon for cocktails. Spicy, rich, and consistent.
• Rittenhouse Rye ($25) — The standard rye for the Sazerac and rye Manhattan. Bottled in bond, 100 proof.
• Old Overholt Rye ($20) — Softer than Rittenhouse; a good starter rye.

Mid-Range ($30–$60)

• Buffalo Trace Bourbon ($30) — America's most beloved bourbon at a fair price. Exceptional in a Manhattan.
• Woodford Reserve ($40) — A step up in complexity. Worth it for sipping and for cocktails where the whiskey is the star.
• Bulleit Rye ($35) — High rye content means lots of spice. Excellent in a rye Whiskey Sour.
• Redbreast 12 Irish Whiskey ($55) — For Irish Coffee and for moments when you want something smooth.

Premium ($60+)

• Knob Creek Single Barrel Bourbon ($65) — Barrel-proof intensity that can handle aggressive mixing.
• WhistlePig 10 Year Rye ($80) — The benchmark Canadian-rye for serious cocktails.

Rum

Value Tier

• Flor de Caña 4 Year White ($20) — The cleanest white rum at this price. Perfect Daiquiri base.
• Plantation 3 Stars ($20) — A blend of Caribbean rums; more complexity than Bacardi at the same price.
• Gosling's Black Seal ($25) — The original Dark and Stormy rum. Bold and molassesy.
• Mount Gay Eclipse ($25) — Barbados rum with a lovely biscuit character. Versatile.

Mid-Range

• Appleton Estate 8 Year ($35) — The go-to aged Jamaican rum. Rich and funky enough to stand out in Tiki drinks.
• El Dorado 12 Year ($40) — Demerara rum from Guyana. Uniquely caramel-forward; excellent in rum Old Fashioneds.
• Rhum Clement VSOP Agricole ($45) — Agricole rum from Martinique; grassy and complex. Opens up a whole new world of cocktails.

Premium

• Havana Club Añejo 7 Años ($45 where available) — Cuba's benchmark aged rum. Extraordinary in a proper Mojito or sipped neat.
• Barbancourt 15 Year ($60) — Haiti's finest; an aged rum that competes with good cognac.

Gin

Value Tier

• Beefeater London Dry ($20) — The archetype. Juniper-forward, clean, works in everything.
• Gordon's London Dry ($15) — The most widely used gin in London cocktail bars. Consistent and affordable.
• Tanqueray London Dry ($25) — Slightly higher proof than most, which means it stands up better in mixed drinks.

Mid-Range

• Hendrick's ($35) — Cucumber and rose petal notes. A polarizing gin — lovely in a Gin Tonic with cucumber.
• The Botanist ($40) — Islay gin with 22 botanicals. Complex and aromatic.
• Plymouth Gin ($35) — Softer and earthier than London Dry. The traditional choice for a Pink Gin.
• Monkey 47 ($45) — German gin with 47 botanicals. One of the most complex gins made; extraordinary in a Martini.

Premium

• Sipsmith V.J.O.P. ($55) — Very Junipery Over Proof. The most juniper-forward modern gin made.
• Cotswolds Dry Gin ($45) — English meadow botanicals; a beautifully balanced gin for sipping neat.

Tequila & Mezcal

Value Tier

• Espolòn Blanco ($25) — Clean, fresh, and mixable. The Margarita workhorse.
• Olmeca Altos Plata ($25) — Earthy and full-flavored. Bartenders' favorite affordable blanco.
• Del Maguey Vida Mezcal ($50) — The entry point for quality mezcal. Smoky but balanced.

Mid-Range

• Fortaleza Blanco ($50) — Estate-grown, tahona-milled; exceptional complexity for a blanco.
• Siete Leguas Blanco ($40) — The high-rye of tequila; spicy, full-bodied.
• Banhez Mezcal Ensemble ($30) — Blends Espadin and Barril; the most approachable mezcal for cocktails.

Premium

• Ocho Reposado ($45) — Single-estate, vintage-dated reposado. Exceptional Margarita base when you want the agave to show.
• Vago Mezcal Espadin ($55) — Brilliant terroir-driven mezcal from Sola de Vega.

Building Your Collection Over Time

Month 1–2: Bourbon, white rum, London dry gin, blanco tequila + Angostura bitters. Month 3–4: Rye whiskey, dark rum, sweet and dry vermouth, Campari, triple sec. Month 5–6: Aged rum, mezcal, Peychaud's bitters, maraschino liqueur. Month 7–12: Fill in the gaps based on what you're making most. Cognac, aged gin, premium vermouth, amaro.

Buying intentionally rather than impulsively is the secret to a well-balanced bar. Every new bottle should open up at least three cocktails you couldn't make before.