Today's bar essentials: as the art of the cocktail becomes more sophisticated, the bar tool box gets an update

You can make a drink, or you can craft an experience," says Tony Abou-Ganim, the prominent beverage consultant also known as The Modern Mixologist. "But to craft an experience, you need the proper tools."

While professional chefs have "tool" kits--good knives, favorite tongs, brushes, and more, says Abou-Ganim, "a lot of bartenders are used to using whatever tools are available to them at the bar." To remedy that, Abou-Ganim recently began marketing his TAG Bar Tools line to provide today's bartenders with a tool kit similar in quality to those of top chefs.

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"But times are changing," adds Ryan Magarian, professional mixologist behind Liquid Kitchen beverage consulting in Seattle. "Chains are beginning to understand that the bar should be an intrinsic part of the concept's overall culinary experience." And as the culture for cocktail excellence grows, beverage professionals are becoming much more savvy and choosy about the tools they use to enhance both the beverage and bar experience.

So, what's the well dressed bar wearing? "First and foremost, a good quality Boston shaker," says Kathy Casey of Kathy Casey Food Studios in Seattle. Boston shakers, which consist of a pint glass and tin, have advantages over the three-piece, solid metal shakers with the built-in strainers and jigger tops, according to Casey. "The three-piece shakers tend to stick and when you do get them apart, it's abrupt and you spill," she says Adam Seger, noted bar chef and general manager of Nacional 27, in Chicago, agrees. "I like a really heavy-duty glass pint and tin, and I actually like a pint that's marked with ounces."

BUY QUALITY

Magarian gets even more specific. "The best tin I've found is the Vollrath 30-ounce. It forms a tight seal, but pops apart from any standard pint easily every time." Magarian adds that shakers that stick and spill can ruin a bartender's confidence--he or she might avoid using them as a result. Abou-Ganim agrees, "Do not spend $1.99 on a tin; it's like a chef buying knives at the discount store."

Next up, muddlers. Until recently, muddlers hadn't changed much in 20 years--they were still dyed, lacquered, too short, too narrow and made of soft wood, writes Dave Nepove on his web site, www.mistermojito.com. "Varnish and dyes are no-no's," says Abou-Ganim, whose TAG line includes a hardwood muddler. "After a while they chip, and where do you think those little flakes go?"

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Nepove's line of Mr. Mojito muddlers also addresses those issues head-on. "We use the hard plastic version of Mr. Mojito at the Cheesecake Factory," says Matt Raftree, beverage and bakery operations manager for the 100-plus-unit Calabasas Hills, Calif.-based chain. "Other muddlers were always too short; if you tried to muddle in the tin you'd cut your hand. We made our bartenders very happy when we brought in the new muddlers."

The Mr. Mojito muddler is 10-inches long and bat shaped; the Mr. Mojito Master muddler is 12 inches with a wide bottom on one end that tapers to a narrower diameter on the other end. Both ends can be used for muddling fruit, herbs and more.

The plastic versions are dishwasher safe. Magarian likes them because they will never pick up flavors of the items being muddled; others prefer the hardwood versions, citing the notion that muddlers can become "seasoned."

Another muddler gaining fans among top mixologists, including cocktailian Gary Regan, is the Pug!, a fat-bottomed muddler with a tapered handle handcrafted by woodworker Chris Gallagher of Cornwall-on-Hudson, N.Y. Word-of-mouth raves are driving sales, and Gallagher may soon take orders via the web.

STANDARD STRAINERS

After all that shaking, stirring and muddling, you need to separate the potables from particulates. The standard strainer is the Hawthorne, with two or four prongs and a wire spring around the edge. It fits into the tin or pint to strain the beverage. Less common, but coming on, is the Julep strainer, a perforated, spoon-shaped strainer that is held over the serving glass to strain larger bits of fruit, herbs, pulp, rind and such.

"The general rule is: If a drink calls for a spirit with juice, milk or cream, shake it with the ice and strain it with a Hawthorne because you are looking for the froth; you want some texture," explains Abou-Ganim. "If the drink calls only for the base spirit and flavoring ingredients--a Negroni or Manhattan--use a long-handled bar spoon to stir it with ice and pour it smoothly into the serving glass, using a Julep strainer. This results in a clear, elegant cocktail."

The latest addition to the strainer family is a kitchen sieve or fine mesh skimmer--the kind chefs use to clarify bouillon, for example. "We started using three-inch diameter mini strainers for our fresh strawberry-infused drinks," says Cheesecake Factory's Raftree. "They're very fine and really strain out all the particles and seeds