Home Bar

From basement bars to man caves to backyard tiki huts, for nearly 75 years, the home bar has been a beloved, boozy playground. The heyday of home bars arose in the US after World War II – men mastered multiple cocktails and hosted smoky, boozy affairs at home bars on Friday nights while kids were left unsupervised to watch inappropriate TV. These days, the global pandemic has led us all to invest heavily in our homes and reluctant to mingle with randoms, so what better way to entertain than by having friends over for a few drinks? According to Instagram, today’s home bar is an upmarket concept featuring a trolley, some swanky ice cubes, homemade syrups and reassuringly overpriced bottle of spirits. Sounds time-consuming, but help is at hand. In ‘Home Bar’, drinks expert Andy Clarke reveals his top tips on fuss-free entertaining, without spending the earth.