Dad love to drink? Get him a gift that upgrades his home bar this year.
If your dad loves to drink — and let’s be honest, most dads do — you’re a lucky man when it comes to gift buying. For years you’ve been grabbing him a crowler of his favorite rare brew or a bottle that can only be bought through deep connections at the liquor store. But what about getting him something that he doesn’t consume in one go?
That’s the beauty of an upgraded home bar item. And remember now, it’s not all fancy glassware and swizzle sticks. The old man drinks creatively, and his home bar arsenal should reflect that, whether it’s glassware embedded with American mountains or a great cooler to take the party on the run. Here are six excellent bar cart upgrades for your dad this Father’s Day.
A separate glass for mixing cocktails — one with a lip for pouring and handsome hand-carved lines — is the perfect addition to any prescriptive cocktail-making dad. This one ought to do nicely.
Price: $35
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Mixologist and James Beard Award winner Jim Meehan released his manual in 2017, to much acclaim. It’s got everything — history, culture, recipes, bar design, spirits production — dad needs to become the well-rounded barkeep he always wanted to be.
Price: $22
The best addition to his home bar? Beer he made himself. These kits are reusable and include all the ingredients and tools he needs to make a gallon of summer wheat beer, New England IPA or grapefruit honey ale.
Price: $45
He might have a classy set of rocks glasses. But ones featuring topographical representations of Half Dome, Denali, Mount Ranier and Mount Whitney? Well, that’s something he hasn’t drank out of before.
Price: $65
Does he love pre-batching cocktails for dinner parties? (Or just like playing mad scientist on his own?) This 2-liter Mini Barrel is made without glue or nails, to ensure no off flavors arise in his cocktail creations as he ages them to perfection.
A trick the wise old bartender has learned? The bar must be able to go mobile. We’ll take Yeti’s latest version of this grab-n-go cooler, which is tall enough to fit most standard bottles of wine and features “Permafrost” insulation to keep everything chilled for as long as the party lasts.
Price: $200