This section is so outrageously personal as to be barely worth reading. But I offer no apologies. Setting your inventory is the second most fun you'll have in a home bar. It doesn't take much AND it can be a never ending process. Depending upon your personal use and tastes and your "customer" base, a home bar will stock from between 12-15 bottles to around a 100 bottles. Here's how it roughly breaks out:
 
TYPE MINIMUM MORE FLEXIBLE
WHISKEY 1 Bourbon + 1 rye, 1 wheat, 1 Irish
SCOTCH 1 blend, 1 single malt + 1 single malt per major region
GIN 1 dry, 1 Old Tom + Genever, 2 American regionals, 1 Scottish
VODKA 1 premium + 1 saffron, 1 citrus
RUM 1 white, 1 Jamaican + 2 rhum agricole
TEQUILA 1 white + 1 anejo, 1 mezcal
BRANDY 1 grape based + 1 cherry, 1 cognac
LIQUEURS 1 orange, 1 maraschino + half dozen others of choice
BITTERS 1 Angostura, 1 orange + 2-3 others of choice
RESOURCES BOOKS and WEBSITES on liquor


Keep in mind that this represents what I call "Mixing stock" - those items that go into mixed drinks. Above and beyond are those very high marks of Whisky, Brandy, and Tequila in particular that you might acquire for straight sipping.

There is too much to say about all these categories to even get started. You will select what you will and investigate it as it matters to you. The internet is rife with information, much of it actually solid. My only advice is buy UP and buy WIDE. That means don't bother to start a home bar with the low end stuff you find in the well of your local bar. And it means unless you really get hooked, don't identify something you like and then look for more of the same. Scatter your purchases around the category. Force your tastes to grow. DO NOT BUY INTO THE OLD ADAGE EXPENSIVE IS FOR SIPPING - CHEAP FOR MIXING.

Do the math: a 750ml bottle that costs a bar $15 [they get it cheaper than you do] yields 16 - 1.5 oz drinks at a cost of $1.50 per drink to them

OK, on average you pay $10 per drink [often more], so multiply X 15 drinks and that means you have paid $150 or more for that cheap bottle of booze! In other words, for what you pay out to drink a bottle of Jim Beam, you can afford to drink a $60+ bottle of bourbon at home and still be money ahead. So what is listed behind these links represents options from the upper middle end and upwards.

Click on a CATEGORY above and get some idea of what one man thinks you ought to consider as you develop and expand your bar. Once you are on a category page, and you desire to know more about a given product, click on the brand name. I know enough, but others know more. I've linked you up to various sources about the products - some flattering, some not. The goal is to help you get grounded about how to spend money on your bar stock. Many of these sites will cross over to other products in the same category, so knock yourself out. A click on the Cocktail glass upper left will return you to this page.

Once you have located enough bottles to begin drinking, click on the icon to the left. It will take you to the Recipes.