Bartenders Must Know Their Liquor

Knowing Liquor Brands Is A Important As Knowing Cocktail Recipes

Inexperienced bartenders really need to brush up on their liquor. Alcohol brands, types of liquor, their proof/potency, and what popular drinks are made which each type of liquor.

I have mentioned before that knowing cocktail recipes is about 10% of the bartender’s job. Knowing liquor is another 10%. Yes, knowing liquor is just as important as knowing your cocktail recipes.

Q. Will this section help me get my first bartending job?

A. Probably. You need to know the basics of liquor. Nothing major – just the basics!

Q. Will the interviewer ask me any questions about liquor?

A. Possibly. Personally, I would always ask something like, “A customer just came up to your bar and ordered a gin and tonic. What would your very first response be?” Of course, your answer should be something like, “You got it! Would you like Tanqueray or maybe some Bombay?” Boom.

There are only two lessons in this section. This introduction, and then a rather lengthy lesson on the alcohols. Take your time, and remember that I have added all liquors, liquor brands, and cocktail recipes to downloadable lists which you can find in Section 20 – Course Resources.

Besides Cocktail Recipes, which is coming up in the very next section, learning the different alcohols and their brands seems to be the most stressful for new bartenders when learning the “Hard Skills.” I’m going to show you that it’s not tough at all.

I’m not going to go over the distillation or fermentation process – or any fine details about each liquor. You don’t need to know that stuff when interviewing for your first bartending job. Remember, you are an inexperienced bartender – and the interviewer knows this.

You can certainly read and study up on these finer points of alcohol, but don’t waste your time at this point stressing out over thinking you need to know everything about alcohol. You simply don’t.

In the next lesson, we’re simply going to go over the types of liquor – and the most popular brands. I’ll also add in, here and there, some of the most popular drinks that are made with each type of liquor. This will give you a bit of a head start for the Cocktail Recipes section coming up next.

Pouring liquor was discussed in a previous section, “Hard Skills,” so that won’t be in this section. Liquor pouring costs, drink pricing, and accounting for waste/spills etc., can be found in Section 13 – How a Bar Operates.