Like ordering takeout, a night at the bar can end up as a huge expenditure. Because of this, many are replacing an evening of cocktails out with quaint gatherings indoors. This shift presents even more of an excuse to impress guests with your bartending skills.

The apps featured below are excellent for the striving mixologist hoping to broaden their wine knowledge or rise out of the gin and tonic rut. They'll become just as vital to your toolkit as a solid shaker or corkscrew.

1. The Liquor Cabinet

Some of the best mixology apps on the market excel due to their extensive collection of solid cocktail recipes. The Liquor Cabinet is unique in that it works to be your cocktail companion every step of the way; it doesn't stop at just recommended recipes.

This aesthetically pleasing app understands that the secret to a solid cocktail starts with the ingredients. Along with recipes from famed bartenders, The Liquor Cabinet offers you tips on which liquor brands complement your cocktail of choice. The app also is there to help any aspiring bartender, regardless of skillset, garner the basic tips needed to build your at-home bar.

Develop into a cocktail connoisseur with The Liquor Cabinet’s Bottles Guide. The feature allows you to learn the extensive background of liquors, their tasting notes, and the right tools of the art.

Download: The Liquor Cabinet (Free, in-app purchases available)

2. Delectable

Understanding your way around a bar goes further than mastering liquor or knowing how to make cocktails. You should also have a basic knowledge of the extensive world of wine. Delectable is an award-winning app that can catapult you into knowing much more than the difference between a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Sauvignon Blanc.

With a simple photograph of a wine’s label, you can take a look at the wine’s reviews, ratings, and additional information regarding the label’s tasting notes. Equal parts educational guide and social network, Delectable allows you to follow top sommeliers and other wine professionals to stay on top of the latest wine recommendations.

Delectable hopes to be with you even as your transition into a more intermediate wine enthusiast with its wine journal feature. At a winery or simply have a memorable bottle you want to truly remember years from now? Log it in your journal and share with your fellow wine lovers.

And even if you're not the biggest wine fan, Delectable is compatible with beers and other spirits as well.

Download: Delectable (Free, premium version available)

3. NYT Cooking

New York Times Cooking, or NYT Cooking, may seem like an outlier in this roundup since it's primarily a cooking app for beginners. However, the collection of cocktail recipes available on NYT Cooking will surprise you. The popular app features over 20,000 recipes, and by our count, over 200 cocktail recipes.

When you search for cocktails, you'll find countless recipe books for various mixes. Some are themed for a holiday, such as St. Patrick’s Day, while others are light weekday spritzers. Each recipe includes its respective ingredients list you can add to the in-app recipe book, along with instructional videos in some cases.

The app is constantly updating, and with the New York Times name behind it, you know you are receiving quality content.

Download: NYT Cooking (Free, in-app purchases available)

4. Distiller

When building your at-home bar, it’s easy to limit yourself to the brands you know or ones you've seen in advertisements. That isn’t always the best recipe for success and might not help you entertain others.

Distiller helps you best sift through the marketing fluff and offers the best liquor options based on professional reviews. The app works by first having you scan the label you want to gather more information on. From there, you’ll be able to keep a journal of what you’ve searched and get recommendations on other spirits to try based on similar taste notes.

The app hopes to be your knowledgeable companion for your next trip to the liquor store. Speaking of which, don't forget about the handy shopping list features on your iPhone.

Download: Distiller (Free)

5. Cocktail Flow

We've looked at apps that help you with specific aspects of mixology. Another important one for your box of tricks is Cocktail Flow, which is the premier app for those who want to boost their creative juices without frills.

With hundreds of recipes, Cocktail Flow is an everyday app that looks to offer you solid recipes but nothing too fancy. It’s the perfect app for getting outside of your usual rut without any sophisticated additions. The Around the World feature is one of our favorites, allowing you to see some of the top cocktails in various countries.

As one of the first apps for the job to appear on the scene, Cocktail Flow has proven itself as a user-friendly recipe tool.

Download: Cocktail Flow (Free, in-app purchases available)

6. Bartender’s Choice Vol. 2

Imagine this scenario: you have a couple of family members or friends over for a few post-dinner drinks, and they are at a loss for what they want. You may want to even woo them with a unique creation. Bartender’s Choice, an app built by famous bartender Sam Ross of the bars Attaboy and Milk & Honey, helps aspiring bartenders counter both scenarios.

You can get a list of suggestions based on your choice of alcohol, the desired sensation, style, and any additional add-ons someone may want. If that makes the mix too complicated, you can have the app "surprise you" by simply shaking your phone. Plus, the user interface is quite attractive.

Download: Bartender’s Choice Vol. 2 ($4.99)

Your At-Home Bar: Ready for Patrons

The above iPhone apps will make you a pro behind the at-home bar. Like cooking, mixology is an art filled with rules. Despite this, the art of mixology also offers a ton of room for creativity. With the tips and tricks you learn from these offerings, you’ll be able to branch out and make your own creations.

If you enjoy learning about mixing drinks, be aware that your iPhone also offers a ton of great cooking apps for beginners, too.

Image Credit: Steven Miller/Flickr