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A drinks trolley is one of the few pieces of furniture that is simultaneously decorative and useful, which is why it keeps coming back into fashion. It is also the piece most likely to end up as an expensive shelf holding four bottles nobody drinks, a dusty cocktail shaker and a novelty gin someone gave you in 2019.
The difference between a trolley that gets used and one that becomes ornamental comes down to what you put on it. These drinks trolley ideas are built around actual use rather than photography, though a well-stocked trolley happens to look better than a badly stocked one anyway.
Every classic cocktail worth making comes from a small number of base spirits. Stock these six and you have covered the ground:
A London Dry gin for Martinis, Negronis, gin and tonics and a French 75. A vodka, which you will use more than you expect for guests who do not like anything else. A bourbon or rye for Old Fashioneds, Manhattans and Whiskey Sours, with rye giving a drier, spicier result. A white rum for Daiquiris and Mojitos. A blanco tequila for Margaritas and Palomas. And a brandy or cognac, the most neglected bottle on most trolleys, for Sidecars and for pouring after dinner when nobody wants another cocktail.
Everything else is optional. Browse the spirits range and buy the six before you buy a seventh flavour of anything.
The thing that separates a trolley that makes good drinks from one that makes crude ones is not more base spirits. It is modifiers.
Sweet vermouth and dry vermouth unlock the Negroni, the Manhattan and the Martini, three of the most requested drinks in the world. Orange liqueur such as triple sec or Cointreau unlocks the Margarita, the Sidecar and the Cosmopolitan. Angostura bitters goes into more classic recipes than any other ingredient and a bottle lasts for years. Add Campari if you like bitter drinks and maraschino liqueur if you get serious.
Make a simple sugar syrup by dissolving equal parts caster sugar in hot water, keep it in a bottle in the fridge, and it lasts a month. That single step improves every sour, every Daiquiri and every Old Fashioned you will ever make at home.
Three things. First, cream liqueurs, which need refrigeration after opening and will separate if left warm. Second, anything already open and delicate, meaning vermouth, sherry, port and most aperitifs. They are fortified wines and they oxidise. Keep them in the fridge and bring them out when you make the drink; a bottle of vermouth left open on a warm trolley for six weeks is the reason so many people think they dislike Martinis.
Third, wine that you actually care about. A trolley is warm, light and vibrated every time someone walks past. Store wine somewhere cool and dark and keep only one or two display bottles on the trolley itself, whether from the wine range or a bottle of fizz that is destined for opening soon.
You need fewer tools than any cocktail book suggests. A jigger with 25ml and 50ml measures, a Boston shaker or a cobbler shaker, a mixing glass, a bar spoon, a Hawthorne strainer, a fine mesh strainer and a decent peeler. That is a complete kit and it fits on one shelf.
For glassware, four rocks glasses, four coupes and four highballs will handle every drink above. Coupes are more useful than martini glasses because they hold their contents when someone gestures with them. If space is tight, skip the highballs and use the rocks glasses for everything short.
Add a small cutting board, a paring knife and a bowl for citrus. Fresh lemons and limes are not optional. Bottled juice is the single biggest difference between a home cocktail and a bar one, and not in your favour.
Use the top shelf for what you use most: the six spirits, standing at the back, with the working surface at the front kept clear so you have room to build a drink. Bottles at the back, space at the front, not the other way around.
Use the lower shelf for glassware, tools, and anything heavy. Weight at the bottom stops the trolley tipping when it is wheeled, which matters if it has small castors and your floors are uneven.
Group by colour and height rather than by category if you care how it looks. Tall clear bottles behind, short dark ones in front. A single plant, a stack of small napkins or a low bowl of citrus breaks up the glass and stops it looking like a shop display.
Wipe the bottles down every few weeks, because sticky necks and dust are what make a trolley look neglected. Rotate anything that is nearly finished to the front so it gets used rather than lingering at half an inch for a year.
Keep ice in mind. A trolley cannot store ice, so keep a decent silicone mould in the freezer and make large cubes the night before you plan to host. Large cubes dilute at roughly half the rate of small ones, which is the difference between an Old Fashioned that holds up and one that turns watery.
Finally, keep a few mixers and something cold in reserve. A trolley is for spirits; the fridge does the rest. A few cans from the beer selection and a bottle of champagne or prosecco covers the guests who do not want a cocktail at all.
Missing a bottle when people are already through the door? We deliver across London inside the M25 in 30 to 45 minutes, day or night. Check the areas we cover and fill the gap on the trolley before anyone notices.
Please drink responsibly. Drinks House 247 operates a Challenge 21 policy - you must be 18 or over to order, and our drivers will ask for photo ID if you look under 21.
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