160,855 Members
160,855 Members

Bartending Skills

Polish up your skills

A friend, confidant and guide – but he’s also your bartender! A tough job that demands a number of skills. And if you plan to be one, either for your own party or someone else’s, here are a few tips that can help you keep the party spirit up and flowing...

The Moves
Scooping, splashing, shaking. Watching the best of bartenders is almost like watching a dance. Find out what those moves are all about.
  • Muddling
    Crushing together herbs or fruit, simple syrup and ice with flat end of a small wooden pestle (muddler) to extract the maximum possible flavour.
  • Rimming
    Decorating the edge of the glass with sugar or salt for taste and visual appeal.
  • Shaking
    Shaking and chilling the ingredients at the same time, with ice. The trick is to serve immediately, as soon as the shaker is icy, to prevent dilution.
  • Build It

    When building a cocktail, the ingredients are poured into the glass in which the cocktail will be served. Usually, the ingredients are floated on top of each other, but occasionally, a swizzle stick is put in the glass, allowing the ingredients to be mixed.

The Equipment
The science behind preparing a fantabulous drink requires quite a few equipments to get the perfect blend, flavour and the right temperature!
  • Shaker
    A shaker consists of two cones of different or same sizes. One is often made of glass, and the other is metallic. These cones are held together to form a closed container, and the shaken cocktail is poured from either one.
  • Stirrer
    A stirrer is usually a long handled spoon with a strainer at the end to do much the same job as the perforated lid on a shaker.
  • Mixing glass
    A mixing glass is usually a wide rimmed jug made of clear glass in which cocktails can be stirred
  • Miscellaneous
    Ice buckets, jugs, measuring cups / spoons, a zester, a corkscrew, a bottle opener, a sharp knife and a chopping board all come in handy
The Technique
Not all cocktails follow the same methods of preparation because of their varying ingredients, but some basic techniques you’ll need to know are:
  • Shaking
    Shake your drinks only with a professional shaker. About 10 shakes is all it takes so long as you are using the right shaker.
  • Frosting
    Dip a glass in water and freeze for over an hour. And make sure no hot drinks go into it at the end!
  • Salting
    To salt the rim of a glass, use a fresh cut lime to rub around it and then invert the glass to dip it gently into a tray of salt and Voila! That glass is all ready for a margarita.
  • Layering
    Nothing makes a drink look more temptingly delicious than when you layer it. Layered drinks are combinations of liqueurs which blend together to create fresh and vibrant colors or stay separated to make colourful designs. When layering drinks, higher density alcohols are said to sink below those that are of lighter densities. Be patient and precise while layering.
  • Making cracked and crushed ice
    Nothing beats buying an ice machine or cracked ice from the store. However, when faced with an ‘emergency’, your best bet would be to take cubes from an ice tray and whack them down with a frying pan! As for crushed ice, break ice into smaller pieces and blend it in when making slushy drinks.
Cocktail Recipes
» more

Subscribe To Our Newsletter Now!  ›