Building A Bar Cart with Lexy White

At-home bartending 101

Happy fake spring everyone! It’s that lovely time of year in the northeast when we bounce between 60-degree, sun-soaked days and below freezing, snowing-for-24-hours days. For those inside days, a fully-stocked bar cart is my personal oasis for creativity and warmth. My bar carts have taken many forms over the years; in college, I stored my $15 handles of vodka on a bookshelf or on top of the fridge; in an early New York apartment, I found my love for whiskey and lined my bottles neatly on top of an antique side table I took from my parents’ house.

I bought my first dedicated bar cart when I moved in with my now-wife. Choosing a bar cart felt momentous, almost indulgent — for the first time, I was in a place to purchase a piece of furniture out of desire, not necessity. It’s more than just a place to store booze for entertaining and at-home mixology — it’s a little slice of me extending beyond myself and into my home. And it’s a welcome gesture for all who visit — come on in, stay awhile, let me make you your perfect drink.

This brings me to The Boozeletter’s very first guest and my lovely coworker — Lexy White! Lexy is a 24-year-old currently living in LA where she proudly spends her time fangirling over The Jonas Brothers and being bombarded by me over Zoom. Lexy is a lot of wonderful things, but one thing she is not (yet), is a bar cart owner — right now her alcohol lives in her freezer and in a cabinet above the fridge. Of course, finding the perfect piece is an individual choice, though I highly recommend a two-tier cart with no glass (especially if you plan to move it between homes at any point). Personally, I went for a gold and wooden bar cart from Target, but I’ll always covet the West Elm bar cabinet and this 1969 robot bar. Lexy is on the hunt for an antique cart to fill her space. Until she finds her perfect piece, she’s given me an alcohol budget of $200 and her preferences — and now, we build Lexy a bar cart.

Building Lexy White A Bar Cart

Likes: tequila, red wine, champagne, espresso martinis, Moscow mules, scotch (and she’s bourbon-curious), entertaining

Dislikes: gin, rum, anything too sweet

What she has: Costco hard seltzer, Casamigos tequila, Trader Joe’s red wine, Costco “emergency” tequila, Kirkland vodka, Andre champagne

Additional notes: Lexy wants to be more intentional about her alcohol purchases so we’re going to get her smaller 375 ml bottles of liquor where we can. She really wants to perfect the espresso martini and likes her tequila on the rocks or with orange and cinnamon. She’s new to whiskey and wants to try a few options before sticking to a favorite.

Lexy’s Shopping List:

• Tito’s Homemade Vodka (a staple for espresso martinis, 375ml, $12.49)

• Mr. Black Cold Brew Liqueur (another espresso martini staple and my personal taste preference over Kahlua, but it’s much higher in caffeine so Kahlua is a fine alternative for those looking for less of a buzz, 200ml, $11.99)

• Angostura Bitters (a staple for whiskey drinks and perfect for Lexy’s orange cinnamon tequilas, 4oz, $10.99)

• Glenlivet 14 Year (Lexy’s favorite scotch and gateway to whiskey, 375ml, $35.49)

• Knob Creek 9 Year Bourbon (a personal favorite for bourbon sipping, also mixes well in cocktails, 375ml, $22.99)

• Dewar’s 12 Year Scotch (cheaper scotch for cocktails — normally I would prefer Monkey Shoulder for scotch cocktails, but it’s hard to find in small bottles, 375ml, $16.99)

• Martini & Rossi Sweet Vermouth (incredibly cost-effective while she explores whiskey cocktails, this one is for manhattans, 375ml, $6.99)

• Cointreau Liqueur (a necessity for margaritas, 375ml, $28.99)

• Aperol Liqueur (a staple for entertaining, perfect to add to cheap champagne for Aperol spritzes, 375ml, $15.49)

• Bundaberg Ginger Beer (these will need to be popped in the fridge before use, but this is the best of the best ginger beer for Moscow mules, 4-pack, $6.99)

• Layer Cake Australian Shiraz (a new wine to add to her collection with a similar price point and taste profile to her fave wines, 750ml, $13.97)

• Aviation Gin (Lexy doesn't like gin, but she does like to entertain and she has a bit of budget leftover — this is for her guests who are partial to G&Ts, 375ml, $14.99)

This brings us to a total of $198.77 — coming in right under the wire within Lexy’s budget! If she feels spendy later on, I’d recommend adding a rum for at-home piña coladas and the Haus Cocktail Kit for a more inventive mixology moment. What’s on your bar cart? What would you add or take away?

Happy drinking y’all!

Hannah Rimm

P.S.

It feels wrong to not wish my very wonderful mother a public happy birthday on my little slice of the internet — HBD to my forever partner in cosmos and margs on the beach <3