Squeeze bottles & pour bottles

Start with capacity. For syrup behind the bar, the 35 and 70 cl squeeze bottles from Bar Professional are the standard: 35 cl for flavours you rarely reach for, 70 cl for sugar syrup that goes all day. If you work with pre-batched drinks or with juice in larger volumes, move up to the Save and Pour pour bottles in one and two litres, also available as a set in mixed colours so you can work by colour instead of by label.

For the part of the bar your guests can see, you want something else. The Bistro jugs from Schott Zwiesel run from 13 to 50 cl and are meant for milk, cream or a small carafe of water on the table. Zwiesel Glas offers 75 cl water bottles from the Marlène and Bar Premium series, with a stopper that keeps the fizz in.

Never fill a squeeze bottle right to the top: leave a couple of centimetres of air above the syrup, otherwise you cannot dose it and the first squeeze shoots straight through. Do not cut the nozzle any wider than it already is, because the narrower the opening, the more precisely you can season an espresso martini with half a centilitre of sugar syrup. For drinks you build straight in the glass, such as a mojito, squeeze the syrup in at the bottom before the ice goes in, so it does not end up sitting on the cubes.

Hold serving jugs by the handle and not around the body, because the warmth of your hand is exactly what you are trying to avoid with chilled water.

Plastic squeeze bottles are dishwasher safe, but screw the cap on loosely and stand them upside down in the rack, otherwise water stays behind inside. Sugar syrup clings to the inner wall: rinse with warm water straight after use before you put the bottle away and you will not have to scrub it later. For narrow necks, reach for one of the glass brushes.

The glass jugs and water bottles from Schott Zwiesel and Zwiesel Glas are made of Tritan and cope with a daily run through the dishwasher. Limescale in the neck comes away with vinegar: leave it to work for an hour and then rinse thoroughly.

If you are still short of tools to get the rest of the bar in order, the additions are close at hand. For measuring out spirits, look at the jiggers, for stirring and building at the bar spoons. If what you actually want is a carafe for the table rather than a bottle behind the bar, you will find it among the carafes, where the decanting models sit as well. Still unsure about the size or the material? The frequently asked questions below will help you on your way.