When choosing what to make available at your wedding bar, there are a number of options to consider. A basic bar will serve just beer and wine, a more elaborate one will have cocktails and mixed drinks. Even within these categories, there are several decisions to be made. Whichever you choose don’t forget to have non-alcoholic options available for kids, non-drinkers, and drivers. We will address each of these components, but there are a few questions you must ask yourself as we go:
1. What will your guests want?
2. What’s your budget?
3. How elaborate do you want to be?
Also bear in mind that most people make a selection and will want to stick with it all night, so you want to have plenty of whatever you offer.
Your best bet with beer is to keep it to two or three selections. Most people like light beers, so you almost definitely want one light selection. Yuengling Lager is popular, especially in PA, and increasingly many people prefer craft options- so consider your local microbrewery, or something like Blue Moon or the Sam Adams Seasonals. If there will be demand for it, perhaps an IPA, or other bold-flavored beer. Do keep in mind that the biggest factor in making the selections should be an awareness of what your guests will like.
Another question about beer is whether you should have draft beer in kegs, or simply serve bottles. It is cheaper per serving to get kegs, as long as you’re confident your guests will go through all of it. A half-barrel keg (standard size) = 120 16oz servings. there are also smaller kegs available in some varieties, called 1/4-barrel and 1/6-barrel (or sixtel) kegs. If you’re serving draft beer, it’s good to keep it to two choices- because you want people to drink them. Without specialty equipment, you can’t take home leftover beer in the keg, so don’t buy way more than you think you will need, or people will want to finish off the kegs. (At the end of the night, people shouldn’t be pushing themselves to drink more, it just gets messy.) If you have less then 100 guests, you will likely not need more than one half-barrel keg.
If you stick with bottles, 3 or 4 selections are good- just have plenty of each. If you have too many choices, people will drink all of a favorite, then you’ll run out, then the next will run out, and so on, and the bartender will spend the whole night apologizing.
In terms of wine, a White Zinfandel, a Chardonnay, and a Merlot will cover your basics- giving you a sweet and a dry white, and a red. (Red wine options tend to be less popular, so you won’t need as much.) At weddings people who don’t drink wine frequently will want something smooth and sweet (White Zin, or other blush), some will want something dryer (Chard), and for the red wine drinkers, a decent Merlot, or a blended red that is not too sweet but not too dry, will satisfy.
If you think there will be demand for it, consider a third white (such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc) and a second red (perhaps Cabernet or Pinot Noir) but the 3 basics will be adequate in 90% of cases. Also, don’t make it complicated by having 3 different brands of pinot grigio, and 2 different brands of pinot noir- keep to one brand of each.
If you choose to offer cocktails, there is still some choice on how elaborate you want to be. The most basic is to offer one or two signature cocktails, inspired perhaps by the theme of your wedding, or part of the story of your relationship. A good bartender can work with you to develop a recipe that is cost-effective, well balanced in flavor, the right color, and not too strong that people couldn’t drink it all night.
The next level is to have a basic cocktail bar stocked with rum, whiskey, vodka, and gin, and with basic mixers: cola, diet, lemon-lime, sours, cranberry, club soda, and tonic. It would be practical if you so desire, to incorporate one or two signature or specialty cocktails into the basic cocktail bar. You may also want to get Scotch, if there are known Scotch drinkers attending. (If you do, make it a decent one. You will probably only need one bottle, but those that drink Scotch won’t likely want the cheap stuff.)
If you really want to go all the way with a full cocktail bar, that would include rum, whiskey, vodka, gin, tequila, triple sec, apple schnapps, kahlua, irish cream, coconut rum, scotch, sweet and dry vermouth, cordials, etc. All of this is not usually practical for the wedding bar. When stocking your bar, or designing specialty cocktails, bear in mind that many well known brands have low-cost alternatives that are just as good but do less advertising, and in some cases only cost half as much. A good bartender can recommend these for you.
Finally, when purchasing liquor bottles, I strongly recommend buying liters or 750 milliliter bottles, rather than 1.75 liter “handles.” The the two reasons for this are that unopened bottles are returnable (so the smaller the bottle, the more likely you are to have returnable leftovers), and the large bottles are really difficult for the bartenders to work with.
That brings us to the non-alcoholic beverage options. In addition to coffee and iced tea, most non-alcohol drinkers will prefer, expect, and ask for sodas, and if you have a basic cocktail bar, sodas and juices will be included. Some other options to consider are lemonade, punch, and iced tea. It is also a great idea to have bottled water available, which people can take with them if they want.
Dave Palmer is the founder and owner of Palmer Bartending , a fully insured bartending service that provides Pennsylvania State certified bartenders for private functions. Dave has 12 years hospitality experience, and is working on expanding Palmer Bartending within and beyond Central Pennsylvania.
