“The Bartesian is pretty easy to use as it should be. Who wants to work hard to make a cocktail? ”
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Makes delicious drinks quickly
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Use your own alcohol
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Capsules are recyclable
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Easy to use
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Lots of settings for the alcohol strength
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A bit bulky
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Expensive costs
One thing the pandemic taught us is that we miss our craft cocktails. Sure, anyone can pour some alcohol and soda or tonic into a glass over ice, but to make a proper Manhattan … that takes some skill. Step into the $ 350 Bartesian Home Bar, which serves premium cocktails upon request and is one of the many home bar systems aimed at bringing the bartender home. Bartesian supplies the mixers, you supply the spirits and there’s no mobile app this reviewer can leave behind. I mean who would want to mess around with a phone to make a drink?
It has the 90s space age look
We wouldn’t call the Bartesian elegant, but it looks more like a bar than some of the other attached home bar machines we’ve seen. The base has a real bar mat on which to place a glass while preparing a cocktail. On both sides of the dispenser system there are two circles in which the spirits bottles are stored. Each section is labeled with the type of alcohol it accepts – there are dedicated spots on the machine for whiskey, tequila, and vodka, while rum and gin share a holder. You simply put the filled bottle with the lid marked Vodka in the vodka bottle holder.
If you’re making a drink that requires any of these spirits, swap out the bottles, which is as simple as it sounds. The manual suggests removing the liquid from the bottles if the machine will not be used for a long period of time. We put tape on the bottles to see how much evaporation can occur if you don’t remove the alcohol from the bottles, and after a couple of weeks there was no change. So you don’t have to drain the spirits into the original bottle or other canister.
The bottom of the machine houses the water tank and the dispenser in which you place the mixer capsules. The capsules work just like in a Keurig style machine. The good news is that the capsules are recyclable. A full water tank holds enough water to make about 20 cocktails. When you have finished using the machine and do not plan to use it for a few days, you should replace the water. Since there is no water filter, it is best to use filtered water in the tank so that the drinks taste as intended.
The only better alternative is to live with a bartender.
The Bartesian measures 14.5 cm high, 15.75 cm wide and 15.5 cm deep and weighs 13 pounds, which makes it easy to move around until you find a home for it. We know the machine was so light – especially when compared to the Drinkworks Home Bar, which weighs nearly 30 pounds. That’s not to say the Bartesian isn’t a bit bulky – it still takes up a fair amount of counter space, but it’s easy enough to move around. If you have your own bar at home, you shouldn’t have a problem placing the device there.
Mix it up cocktails in no time
The alcohol-free capsules that the mixers contain are made from real ingredients. For example, the mango and margarita mix consists of water, sugar, clarified mango juice concentrate, natural flavors, as well as citric acid and preservatives. You can tell the difference in the taste of the drink.
What we love about the Bartesian is that there really isn’t anything complicated – from setup to use. Fill the bottles with the appropriate spirit and place them in the correct holder. Add water and place a capsule in the dispenser. Then pull them down, wait for you to hear the click, and let the machine make a cocktail in just a few seconds. It really is that simple.
When you put a capsule in the dispenser and pull it down, the Bartesian will recognize it immediately and ask how you would like your cocktail: mocktail, light, normal or strong. Make a selection and press Mix on the touchscreen display. We should mention that after piercing the capsule there is no going back – that is, it either makes the cocktail or you lose the mixture. This type of behavior is common on any pod-like machine. The good news is that it is quite difficult to insert the capsules incorrectly into the device.
Make it a double
We loaded the bottles of spirits from the middle shelf (Beefeater Gin, Old Grand-Dad Bourbon, Standard Russian Vodka, and Bacardi Rum) and gathered the same group of testers who tried the Drinkworks machine to see what they thought.
There are over 30 cocktails and some are pretty chic; I am speaking to you, witch heart and rhubarb bush. Of course, there are some classic setbacks like Sex on the Beach, Kamikaze, and Mai Tai, as well as low-calorie versions of mainstays like Cosmopolitan, Margarita, and Whiskey Sour. Capsules come in packages of six ($ 15) to 36 ($ 80), so the price of each capsule ranges from $ 2 to $ 2.50, depending on the pack purchased. The company also offers a monthly subscription service that will save you even more.
In our tests, we made several different cocktails: Mango Margarita, Regular Margarita, Long Island Iced Tea, Boulevardier, and an old-fashioned one. All of our skeptical taste testers had the same answer: “These actually taste like cocktails and are pretty good too.” They could definitely tell when we poured them a “strong” drink.
We also made a couple of mocktails which were pretty good too. However, we expected the water to compensate for the lack of alcohol and it just isn’t. The Bartesian still mixes the capsule with some water and puts it in the glass, but that’s all he does. It’s up to you to add the rest. In some cases we added a squirt of soda water, in others we just added more water. We could go a little wild and add lemonade. They were still a lovely way to have a fun drink in a cocktail glass.
Our opinion
There’s a lot to like about the Bartesian, and it seems to be in the sweet spot of the automated cocktail makers currently available. We appreciate that the machine is so incredibly easy to use and mixes delicious drinks incredibly quickly. We are excited to see what other mixes the company has in store for us.
Is there a better alternative?
Given the $ 350 price tag and the prices currently available in the market, the only better alternative is to live with a bartender.
How long it will take?
There is no information on how long the Bartesian will last. After all, home bars are a new class of products. However, there is a one-year guarantee that covers defects. It is worth noting, however, that the boxes with the capsules have a best-before date – less than a year.
Should you buy it?
The bartesian costs $ 350, which isn’t cheap. This type of product is not for everyone. If you are looking for a machine in the market that will make solid cocktails with the spirit of your choice then it is the best for the money right now. It’s also pretty foolproof to use, which we really appreciate. Who wants to work hard to make a cocktail?
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