As the camaraderie and fuzzy intimacy of sitting at a dimly lit bar surrounded by strangers becomes an increasingly distant memory, more and more distilleries and restaurants are offering cocktail kits for at-home drinking pleasure. While we may not be congregating like we used to, we can channel that atmosphere and support our local haunts by making these cocktails at home — with their help, of course.
No matter what you’re putting in your drink, the simple act of making a beverage — made simpler with easy instructions and pre-measured ingredients — can be meditative. Take five minutes to make yourself something special.
Here are a few recommended kits, sorted by drinking experience. Make a choice by picking a distillery, finding a favorite booze, or ordering take out from a favorite restaurant.
Distilleries
Agave
Flying Dutchman
Paloma Cocktail Kit: $50. Fresh grapefruit and lime juice, Q Grapefruit Soda, and rim salt.
Yield: 6 cocktails
Flying Dutchman’s cocktail kit comes packed with freshly squeezed juices, grapefruit soda, and a choice of salt, sugar, or Tajin to garnish your glass’ rim. The kit is available to buy via their online store and comes with or without their Frontera Norte Blue Agave, in case you have a bottle of tequila or mezcal you’ve been saving for something special.
Extras: Wandering Kitchen’s ever-evolving food menu, is available for order and pick-up from the distillery. Try the boozy bundt cake for $25 which is spiked with Flying Dutchman Spice Rum.
Fernet
Stillheart Distillery
Fernando Cocktail Kit: $30. 8 oz. jar of kola flavored elixir, dehydrated lemon garnishes, Topo Chico sparkling water, and a 375ml bottle of spirit or liqueur of choice. Fernet is recommended.
Yield: 4.5 cocktails
Stillheart’s still here store sells cocktail kits that include ingredients for four and a half cocktails. Like a true industry professional, pick up the Fernando kit and opt for a 375mL bottle of Fernet to mix with their kola elixir, dehydrated lemon garnishes, and the superior bubble water, Topo Chico. Their nonalcoholic kits are available for $15 to $20 to be enjoyed with a spirit from your home bar or on their own.
Extras: Three different varieties of glassware are available for purchase as well, including 4.75-ounce 1924 coupes for $10 each. Snag a few to make like Nick and Nora whenever a martini mood strikes.
Rum
Lawless Distilling Company
Some Tea, All Shade: $45. Ito En jasmine iced green tea, fresh limes, passion fruit syrup, dehydrated lime garnish, Hoshizaki 1” ice cubes, and a 375ml bottle of Lawless Rum.
Yield: 8 cocktails
Log onto Lawless’ hustle store to preorder kits that include recipe cards, hand sanitizer, and the good stuff: Hoshizaki ice, which is frozen into thick, square cubes perfect for shaking and stirring cocktails without watering them down. In Lawless fashion, stir up a drink for yourself and decorate for the harvest season or for Halloween, if that’s more your vibe.
Extras: A set of four custom slate coasters for $20 make a great addition to anyone’s home bar.
Whiskey
Twin Spirits Distillery
Old Fashioned Cocktail Kit: $30. Maple syrup, vanilla, Angostura bitters, a whole orange, and a 375ml bottle of M Whiskey.
Yield: 6 cocktails
Twin Spirits’ M Whiskey is 95% rye and 5% malted barley and aged in red wine barrels from Alexis Bailly Vineyard. The warming liquor mixed with maple syrup and vanilla make this the perfect kit to enjoy while flannel-clad and huddled around a campfire on a brisk autumn evening.
Extras: The online store has everything from a 6-inch wooden muddler engraved with the Twin Spirits’ logo for $9 to 1-pound bags of espresso beans for $14 to enjoy the morning after.
Gin
Tattersall Distilling
Peach Rosemary Hops: $32. Peach, honey, rosemary, hops, and a 375ml bottle of Tattersall Gin.
Yield: 6 to 8 cocktails
Tattersall’s curbside cocktail kits must be reserved and picked up Thursday through Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. or Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. at their takeout window. The kits are all pre-batched, meaning bartenders infuse and combine the ingredients before bottling the cocktails, sans the booze. Prices range from $32 to $35, depending on the spirit.
Extras: Additional bottles of mixers can be added for $20 each.
Vodka
Norseman Distillery
Hawks Ridge: One can (contains two drinks) for $6.99. Wild Sumac, blackberry, lemon, mint, ginger, peppercorn, and sage syrup. $15 for 375 ml bottle of vodka
Yield: 2 to 3 cans and one bottle to make 4 to 6 cocktails.
The online store has over twenty 12 oz. cans of sweet or bitter nonalcoholic mixers. Bear Island, Hawks Ridge, and Lake One are the newest concoctions on the menu, all for the low price of $6.99 each. Norseman recommends mixing one half of a can with a 1 to 2 oz. pour of liquor. The al la carte setup is ideal for experimentation and customization for those who want to mix and match their kits to personal taste.
Extras: Grab an eight pack of St. Paul’s finest, Minnesota Ice, for an additional $6.
Dashfire Bitters
Chai White Russian: 100ml can or 750ml bottle. Vodka, Wisconsin cream, chai bitters, cane sugar.
Available at restaurants and liquor stores around town, Dashfire’s cocktails can be purchased in individual cans or larger-format bottles. The White Russian is relatively low in ABV at only 17% and is ideal for pouring over ice. The chai bitters give an otherwise too-sweet drink, a tasty, warmth and complexity.
Restaurants with the Works
La Pistola at Eastside
Sherry Cocktail Kit: $45. Bottle of Amontillado sherry, choice of sherry tonic, choice of cocktail mix, garnishes, cocktail shaker, and a stirring spoon.
Yield: 4 to 6 cocktails
Generally, sherry is unmistakably delicious with dinner, but this Amontillado sherry is even more fit to grace your dinner table. This iteration is a golden, caramel color, with nutty aromatics and a dry finish. Eastside’s kit is available for takeout and includes a cocktail shaker and stirring spoon.
Extras: Order a marinated anchovy sandwich, drink some sherry, and read the Edgar Allan Poe story for a spooky evening.
Fhima’s Minneapolis
Smoke in Her Eyes: $13 for one, $23 for two cocktails. Tequila, mezcal, ginger, matcha, lime, vanilla, and smoke.
Yield: One or two cocktails.
All six of Fhima’s cocktails are available for curbside pickup and include the spirit and instructions for cocktail assembly. These smaller options of either one or two cocktails are ideal for a cozy weeknight dinner.
Extras: Order the Moroccan tacos to pair with the What She’s Having smoky sip.
Add Your Own Booze
Red Cow
Bloody Mary Mix, $22. House bloody Mary mix, four beef sticks, cheese cubes, olives, house pickles, skewers, and rimming salt.
Yield: 4 cocktails
Red Cow’s brunch menu is served Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The bloody Mary kit is available for purchase separately for $22 or alongside two breakfast burritos for $40. Treat yourself to a fancy bloody with vodka or tequila and all the salty snacks on a skewer without enduring the hustle and bustle of waiting to be sat at brunch.
Bora Bora: $22. Lime juice, almond orgeat, rose water, orange bitters, edible flower garnish, and ice shards from MN Pure & Clear.
Yield: 4 cocktails
Young Joni’s Bora Bora cocktail kit recommends the addition of a favorite rum for a tropical cocktail. Orgeat is a sweet syrup made from the combination of sugar and blanched almonds and a popular ingredient in tiki drinks. Mix up this drink, throw a flower on top, and brag on Instagram.
Mucci’s St. Paul
Mucci’s Juice Kit: $20. Bottle of red wine, four cans of orange soda, orange, and a bag of MN ice.
Yield: 4 cocktails
Mucci’s juice kit provides all the goods for a red wine sangria and pizza or pasta night. While you might get bonus points if the “juice” is assembled in a punch bowl, it’s safe to assume that this combination would taste just as amazing out of a red solo cup. No judgment here.
Bootleg: fresh mint, lemon, lime and fizzy soda water combined perfect to mix with gin or vodka.
Yield: 8 cocktails
This North Loop spot is serving up a crisp refreshing drink that’s perfect for a really herbaceous or London dry-style gin, or pour in a little vodka. The bright mint and citrus fizz goes down easily and is just the right amount of sweet/tart.
Peach Shrub, $15. Mixer to blend with sparkling water, bubbly wine, or preferred spirit.
Shrubs are vinegary and sweet, usually made with fresh fruit. Alma Cafe’s peach shrub is the perfect farewell to summer fruits and will easily add complexity to a vodka soda, gin and tonic, or dressed up La Croix.
Yield: 5 cocktails
Old Fashioned, $29. Old Fashioned syrup and P.S. Steak’s special bitters blend, eight large ice cubes, brandy soaked cherries and one orange.
The next best thing to sliding into that stunning bar inside this posh steakhouse is mixing up a big batch of the Old Fashioned at home. The dark and silky syrup elevates any bourbon, for this purpose, it’s best to pull out your very best bottle. Mix in some bitters and pour over one of the giant, crystal clear ice cubes provided with this kit.
Yield: 8 cocktails
Hai Hai
Tour Bus Tales: $16. Ginger, lemongrass, pineapple drinking vinegar, and Thai basil.
Yield: 4 cocktails
This kit from Hai Hai comes neatly bottled for maximum convenience. To make the Tour Bus Tales, add 2 oz. of gin (or your favorite spirit) and 4 oz. of the mixer and stir or shake. Want to plan ahead or save some for later? No problem. These mixers can last up to one week in the fridge, so there’s no pressure to finish it all in one sitting.
Bar Supplies
Martinpatrick 3 kit, “The Perfect Host:” $162.02, tax included
Grand Cafe offers a luxurious bar supply kit in addition to meal kits on its website. Whether you keep it for yourself or gift it to a loved one who was a mixologist in another life is up to you. Dim the lights and open a bottle of Sangiovese with a 24k gold plated corkscrew and suddenly your living room the finest place in town.