The 20 Best Bottles To Kick Start Your Home Bar

1. Uncle Nearest 1856 Premium Whiskey

Uncle Nearest 1856 Premium Whiskey is a high-quality craft whiskey produced in Tennessee using a combination of corn and rye that is put through the Lincoln County Process of charcoal mellowing before being oak barrel aged.

The nose tempts buttery vanilla and brown sugar mixed with currants. The palate features deft caramel corn whiskey, cereal oats, a touch of wood, and grasses with depth from brown sugar. The finish belies the 100-proof (50% abv) by offering traces of mint leaf and creamy milk chocolate.

While I’m usually a bourbon drinker, if I’m choosing a bottle of American whiskey to be part of my burgeoning collection then I’m choosing Uncle Nearest, and pouring a generous measure into my rocks glass at the first opportunity.

2. Buffalo Trace Bourbon

Buffalo Trace topped our list of the best whiskies for Old Fashioned cocktails. Personally, I enjoy unlocking the flavor in Buffalo Trace by adding a couple of cubes of ice and sipping.

The tasting notes for Buffalo Trace are described as “a complex aroma of vanilla, mint, and molasses. Pleasantly sweet to the taste with notes of brown sugar and spice that give way to oak, toffee, dark fruit, and anise. This whiskey finishes long and smooth with serious depth.” Yes, please.

It’s a smooth and refined tasting bourbon that can go into literally any cocktail recipe and work brilliantly, or as a straight-up sipping whiskey.

3. Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon

Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon is my favorite drinking bourbon, whether in a simple mixed drink, a classic cocktail, or neat in a rocks glass.

Elijah Craig Small Batch is distilled from a traditional bourbon mash bill of 78% corn, 10% rye, and 12% malted barley and then aged for eight to 12 years in #3 char new American oak barrels.

Each batch of Elijah Craig is selected from fewer than 100 of the finest barrels at the Heaven Hill Distillery in Louisville.

If you want a well priced bourbon whiskey that can be useful in a variety of drinking situations, then Elijah Craig is a great bottle to have on hand.

4. Mount Gay XO

Mount Gay is the oldest rum distillery in the world, having crafted rum in Barbados since 1703.

Mount Gay XO is a small batch blend of carefully selected fine rums distilled in traditional copper pots and column stills, then matured between five to 17 years in bourbon barrels, American whiskey, and cognac casks.

XO is an exceptionally round and complex rum, featuring notes of dark chocolate, salted caramel, baked figs, and the spice of cloves in its flavor profile. Mount Gay XO is equally at home served simply with lime juice, or mixed into a classic rum punch, piña colada or other cocktail recipes.

5. Wray and Nephew White Overproof Rum

Iconic Jamaican rum brand Wray and Nephew’s White Overproof Rum carries an extra wallop (at 63% ABV) and is designed with your party in mind.

Wray and Nephew has a naturally sugar-sweet aroma with overtones of fermented molasses. The palate is fruity, and the extra booze kick is tangible alongside notes of banana and a little oak.

Wray and Nephew is responsible for 90% of domestic Jamaican rum sales and is the pre-eminent “strong” overproof white rum sold worldwide.

It’s a fruity, fiery white spirit for the rum lover who enjoys holding court in social situations, and is best used in your favorite cocktail, such as a piña colada, daiquiri, or mai tai. If you want to be a mixologist with your home bar, then it needs to be on your list!

6. Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva

Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva is a Venezuelan rum distilled in copper pot stills and aged for 12 years. It’s a subtly spicy, dark rum, with the banana flavors augmented by notes of vanilla and tropical fruit.

Diplomático is produced from molasses and sugarcane honey from the syrup left behind from the cane’s first boiling.

Distinctively bottled in green, Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva is an aged rum suitable for sipping, mixed with ginger beer or fresh juice, or deployed in a range of fruity cocktail choices.

7. Absolut Vodka Elyx

Absolut Vodka Elyx defines luxury Swedish vodka, made from single estate winter wheat (this means the grain only comes from one specific source prior before distillation).

The vodka is hand produced in an antique 1921 copper column still and bottled at 84.6 proof, however, the silky smoothness is such that you can completely disregard the hike in alcohol content.

Absolut Vodka Elyx delivers a beautifully smooth taste and almost completely non-existent bite, suitable for the novice and vodka lover alike. At its price point under $50, Absolut Elyx is hard to go past if you’re looking to enjoy a premium vodka crafted with commitment to quality and innovation.

8. Elit Vodka

Stolichnaya’s Elit Vodka is an ultra-lavish vodka that screams luxury; from the elegant bottle design to the velvety mouthfeel and touch of sweetness on the palate.

Only the highest quality wheat, rye, and water are used for this vodka made with traditional Russian distilling techniques. Stoli Elit is made using a traditional “freeze filtration” method inspired by the Russian practice of leaving casks out in the freezing conditions to age and mature during distillation.

The perfect vodka to drink with tonic water and lemon peel, or to put in a premium vodka martini or classic cocktail, you’ll be hard-pressed to experience a smoother (or more dangerous) drinking experience than Elit.

9. Wyborowa Vodka

A cheaper Polish vodka whose smooth taste belies its price point – I’m inclined to drink this at every opportunity before anything else – Wyborowa means “selected.”

Interestingly, it’s a rye grain vodka that is tremendously smooth yet likes to keep the rye influence intact. Wyborowa aligns nicely with livening up an orange juice, wine spritzer or your favorite cocktail recipes, but is also useful for a simple ginger beer or mixed in with cranberry juice and simple syrup.

If you’re a mixologist looking for a genuinely good bottle to go further at party time, Wyborowa Vodka is an option well worth considering putting alongside your mixing glass and julep strainer in your home bar.

10. Casa Dragones Blanco

Casa Dragones Blanco is a small batch, premium Blanco tequila made at the headwaters of the Volcano of Tequila and is pound for pound the best spirit of its kind in our $100 price bracket.

Made 100% from the blue Weber agave, Dragones features a unique distillation process resulting in a super smooth and crisp taste with hints of citrus, peppers, and cloves.

Dragones Blanco’s smoothness and rich flavor are at odds with many other silver or gold tequila expressions, making it perfect for every occasion, whether it’s a top-quality shot with lemon juice and salt to get the night started, a relaxing sipper over ice, or a premier cocktail shaker filled with delicious margaritas.

11. Herradura Reposado

Herradura Reposado is rich amber with copper color highlights, the result of white oak barrel rest and maturation.

While many cocktail bartenders endorse the use of silver tequila only, a good Reposado tequila like this Herradura can kick your margarita or classic tequila cocktail flavor up to a new taste level.

The aroma carries light lashings of anise, dried fruit, and spices around cooked agave, with a surprisingly smooth vanilla and butter flavor that extends to a smooth, sweet finish with a hint of spice and heat.

12. Tequila Fortaleza

Tequila Fortaleza is a small-batch, handcrafted tequila made with the same production methods used in the family operation from nearly 150 years ago.

Each agave is selected for ripeness before it’s harvested and steam-cooked in a small brick oven. From there, a two-ton tahona stone wheel slowly squeezes the juices from the agave. When fermentation is complete, the distinctive tequila taste is achieved by being distilled twice in two very small, copper-pot stills.

Fortaleza Blanco is a classic unaged tequila with a creamy texture and a tasty finish. The Blanco’s flavor includes cooked agave, vanilla, butter, citrus, black pepper, and herbs.

13. Hendrick's Gin

This small batch Scottish gin brand, crafted in tiny 500-liter batches, is produced by William Grant & Sons and infused with cucumber, rose petal, and traditional juniper berry at the brand’s distillery.

Hendrick’s Gin is the result of combining two different spirits from rare and unusual stills to create a smooth and unique flavor.

The more individual process creates a flavor of subtle flowers, roots, and seeds, which marry well when trying to balance the sharpness of dry gin against sweet or salty flavors.

Hendrick’s Gin meshes fantastically with bitters, lemon juice, and vermouth when crafting old school cocktails, so don’t be afraid to throw it in the cocktail shaker with a bar spoon and some good ideas if you’re looking to get creative.

14. Roku Gin

The key to Roku’s excellence is the concept of Shun, which is the tradition of enjoying food and drink in the proper season. Roku (which means six) is the premium Japanese craft gin created by the House of Suntory in Osaka.

Six Japanese botanicals – sakura flower (cherry blossom), sakura leaf, yuzu citrus peel, sencha tea (green tea), gyokuro tea (refined green tea), and sansho pepper – give Roku its individuality and Japanese soul.

The six Japanese botanicals combine with eight traditional gin botanicals – juniper berry, coriander seed, angelica root, angelica seed, cardamom seed, cinnamon, bitter orange peel, and lemon peel – in a multi distillation process to create a noteworthy but authentic gin taste.

15. Tanqueray London Dry Gin

Snoop used to rap about Tanqueray in the 90s, and it remains popular for the contemporary gin lover – whether it’s for home mixology or at the bar – and as the go-to gin for bartenders making a kick-ass gin cocktail.

Tanqueray London Dry Gin blends four distinct botanicals – juniper, coriander, angelica, and licorice – to create a perfectly balanced dry gin with a unique herbal flavor.

Fully imported from the UK with a 47% ABV (94.6 proof), Tanqueray London Dry Gin is a versatile mid-price spirit that all types of gin lovers can enjoy.

16. Noilly Prat Vermouth

Almost an afterthought in many a gin martini or vodka cocktail, Noilly Prat is the first and most famous of all vermouth expressions.

Noilly Prat is a dry vermouth, a straw-colored fortified wine created by French herbalist Joseph Noilly in 1813 and a fundamental flavor underpinning many martinis.

If it’s not quite your style of mixer, there’s a range of sweet and dry vermouth variations available to jazz up your cocktail mix.

17. Cointreau

Liqueurs like Cointreau and schnapps are just as important to the full cocktail flavor as other essentials such as simple syrup, orange bitters, and Angostura bitters.

Cointreau is another quality bottle if you want to professionalize your home bar’s mixing capabilities.

A triple sec orange liqueur, Cointreau is a brilliant, sweet lower alcohol ingredient for a range of yummy cocktails.

18. Vamos Riendo Ensamble Mezcal

Vamonos Riendo ( translated as “Let’s Get Laughing”) is a mezcal producer that marries the diverse flavors of the Tobala, Espadin, and Oaxacan agave varieties in making this delicious mezcal.

A cousin to tequila, mezcal is the wild agave-based spirit that is rich in warmth, flavor, and fun. It’s a brilliant reflection of the Mexican spirit-making process and commitment to quality mezcal drink distillation.

If you want to add a touch of mystique to your celebration, having a great mezcal such as this will be good for your home bar’s bona fides.

19. Jameson Irish Whiskey Caskmates (Stout Edition)

This sweeter Irish whiskey is great for cocktails or for a nightcap, making a welcome addition to any home bar. Jameson is the most popular, with their Caskmates expressions enjoyable as a stand alone tipple or for dosing up a classic Irish Coffee.

Jameson’s Caskmates are finished in stout barrels (or IPA casks) at the end of the aging process just before bottling to create cocoa notes, butterscotch, and coffee flavors while remaining true to the smoothness of Jameson’s triple distilled process.

20. Pernod Absinthe

Pernod Fils was the most popular absinthe brand throughout the 19th century until it was banned in the US in 1915 due to the thujone content that was believed to cause hallucinations.

The United States ban wasn’t lifted until 2007 when science proved small amounts of the thujone compound meant little in the way of hallucinations.

Pernod Absinthe still follows the original recipe and processes of Henri-Louis Pernod by using a secret bunch of herb botanicals to achieve its all-natural, vibrant green color and enjoyable taste.

Pernod Absinthe is sweeter and less complex than other expressions, containing more of a straightforward candy/licorice note, followed by a palate of star anise, vanilla, and hyssop.

The finish is slightly spicy with a hint of wormwood and is more gentle on the tongue than other varieties of this controversial alcoholic drink.

Having a bottle of absinthe as part of your home bar set up is an instant conversation starter and a big time entertainment piece. Make sure you know how to do the ritual!