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Keep your guest list short. If it exceeds a dozen people, you may want to get professional help in organising the evening.
Place a make shift bar in a position that facilitates movement. Guests should pick up their drinks and move away.
Let someone take charge of the bar. To have two people in charge would be ideal.
The room should have small tables placed all around.
There should also be enough ashtrays and coasters.
Snacks can be served on a separate counter or a larger table.
Some snacks can be served in light bowls that can be passed around.

Make sure that there are plenty of soft drinks and plain water too.
Small plates, paper napkins, forks and toothpicks are a must.
Good music is essential. Choose from soothing instrumental to foot tappers depending on your the kind of invitees.
Leave the television out of sight. If possible, disconnect it completely. It kills conversation and hogs the limelight.

Making the cocktails

• Cocktail making is an art.

• Actually cocktail is all about the art of mixing. If the components are not put together correctly, the cocktail could well become a mock tale .

Here are a few expressions used in cocktail mixing

• Blend: Cocktails with fruits, cream and eggs are usually blended. The ingredients are blended together in an electric blender, with some crushed ice.
• Build: The ingredients have to be poured into the glass one on top of the other. Very gently does it.
• Float: You could pour the liquid very slowly over the back of the spoon, so that it slides into the glass and floats on the top.
• Shake: Cocktails like a Bloody Mary need to be put together in a cocktail shaker. The cocktail is then strained into a glass.
• Stir: Most of the classic cocktails like the Adonis are stirred. The ingredients are poured into a mixing glass, stirred with ice and then strained into a glass.

The flourish

• One can serve cocktails and other drinks in highball glasses, which are multipurpose.
• It is preferable to serve white wine based cocktails in glasses with long stems, brandy in brandy balloons and liqueurs in short stemmed glasses.
• To add more colour to the cocktail, you could garnish it with fruit rings, a fancy straw, an umbrella, mint leaves and figments of your own creativity!

Go on. Let the spirits flow. Let the moods soar.