The origin
Why I Started From Bed to Bar
I'm Stephanie. I'm a home gardener who also enjoys a well-made drink — and for a long time, those two things felt completely separate. I'd grow mint that I didn't know what to do with. I'd pick lavender and let it dry out on the counter. I had a lemon verbena plant that sat there looking beautiful and entirely unused.
At some point it clicked that everything I was growing was already in cocktail recipes — it just wasn't labeled that way. The mint in my raised bed was a mojito waiting to happen. The rosemary by the back fence was a sour looking for a bourbon. The elderflower I almost ripped out was practically a spritz on its own.
From Bed to Bar started as a way for me to document what I was figuring out: which herbs work well in drinks, how to turn a backyard harvest into something worth pouring, and how to do all of it without needing a professional bar setup or a bartending certificate. It's grown from there, but that's still the heart of it — practical, garden-first, honest about what actually works at home.
What's here
What You'll Find Here
From Bed to Bar is built for home gardeners, beginners at the bar, and anyone who wants to actually use what they grow. You don't need a lot of equipment. You don't need an impressive spirits collection. You need a garden — even a small one — and some curiosity.
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Cocktail and mocktail recipes built around real garden ingredients — herbs, edible flowers, fruit, and homegrown syrups. Every recipe includes a non-alcoholic version, because garden-forward drinks don't need alcohol to be worth making.
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Garden tips for growing plants that are genuinely useful at the bar — including which varieties are worth the effort, how to harvest without killing the plant, and how to preserve what you grow.
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A zone-by-zone planting guide so you can plan what to grow, when to sow, and what's likely to thrive in your climate.
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Bar essentials guidance covering the basic tools, techniques, and pantry staples that make home bartending less intimidating — without pushing you to buy more than you need.
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Blog posts on seasonal ingredients, what's growing in the garden right now, and the practical side of going garden-to-glass at home.
The approach
How Recipes Are Built
Every recipe on this site starts with the garden, not the spirit. That changes the way drinks get developed — it's seasonal first, substitution-friendly, and realistic about what home gardeners actually have on hand.
Important to know
A Note on Gardening, Foraging & Safety
Growing your own ingredients is one of the most rewarding parts of the garden-to-glass approach. But it comes with responsibility — especially when those ingredients end up in what you eat and drink.
Please keep these points in mind:
🌱 Garden & foraging safety
- Identify plants correctly before you use them. Many edible plants have toxic lookalikes. If you're foraging rather than growing your own, be certain of what you're picking. When in doubt, don't use it.
- Only use food-safe, edible plants. Not everything that looks like a herb is safe to consume. Stick to verified edible varieties, and cross-check before trying anything unfamiliar.
- Avoid sprayed or chemically treated plants. Don't use plants that have been treated with pesticides, herbicides, or other chemicals not approved for food use. Grow your own where you can, and know the source when you don't.
- Some plants cause reactions in some people. Allergies to herbs, flowers, and botanicals are real. If you or your guests have known sensitivities, check ingredients carefully.
If you're ever unsure about plant identification or food safety, the right call is to leave it out. No cocktail is worth a health risk.
On alcohol: every recipe on this site includes a mocktail version. If you're making the alcoholic version, please drink responsibly, know your limits, and never drive after drinking. This site is intended for adults of legal drinking age. See our full disclaimer for more.
Ready to get started?
Start with what's growing.
Browse recipes built around real garden ingredients, or find out what to grow this season for the best drinks.