Many a couple has been known to try their hand at a bit of DIY on their wedding day. From the stationery, the food, the styling and even wedding dresses. So it’s no surprise that creating cocktails for weddings at a home wedding would be next on the DIY train! The awesome team at Shakers on Wheels have put together a how-to on creating cocktails at home for your wedding day… just to give you all a bit of insider knowledge! 

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A guide to things to think about when planning on creating and providing the beverages yourself for your home wedding!

What to Serve?

Knowing your guests’ demographic will determine spirits, flavours, colours and glassware to use to make your beverage selection a hit! Also, gather some thoughts from your family and friends! Even do a poll amongst them! But most importantly, make sure you can actually make what you pick without much hassle, and that they taste great!

How much stock do I purchase?

This part can be very tricky! It really depends on the above “what to serve” point, but you know your friends and family’s consumption better than anyone (!) so a great place to start is your guest list, figure out what your guests’ general consumption is, and decide from there. More is definitely more – you don’t want to be caught short in this department.

One thing is for sure – you’ll need a lot of ice! Cocktails are so much better when cold, and large ice cubes are the best when it comes to cocktails (slower dilution), so you’ll need a large mould to make some.

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What tools do I need?

Keep it simple! Large drinks jars with taps, ice scoop and something to stir should be everything you need on the day to create your preferred concoctions!

Glassware and Garnish!

This really depends on the drinks you plan to serve. Something to keep in mind is that ladies generally love coupettes and fancy glasses, whereas gents are more into the rocks/short glasses!

Because looks matter! Edible garnishes look amazing and are pretty cheap. Dehydrated citrus are easy to make from your oven and look great! Fresh fruit would do just fine as well, and flowers in ice cubes are also a pretty option!

RSA – Drink Responsibly

Just a reminder to go over the guidelines for responsible drinking and serving alcohol in a home setting.

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Your Best Best…

Doing batch cocktails is definitely the way to go if you don’t want to hire bartenders for the day. This is when you select a small number of cocktails and create them in one go or in a self serve capacity for your guests. For example, a DIY station works great for a mimosa with different flavours. This can get a bit messy and may require a bit of maintenance such as topping up different juices and ice, and cleaning the area, so this is definitely something to consider.

Tips on Creating Batch Cocktails 

– Try to avoid fizzy ingredients as they become flat and affect the quality of your drinks!
– Do not place ice in the jars! Your awesome cocktail will get watery very quickly! Set up an ice bowl with a scoop where guests can help themselves.
– Keep something to stir by the jars as some of the cocktails may “split” – some of the ingredients could sit at the bottom and some at the top.
– Have a sign on the cocktail station naming the drinks!
– If using fresh juices fruit etc, be careful they don’t get warm as they may turn (which we definitely do not want!).

About Shakers on Wheels: Shakers on Wheels is the cocktail catering & mobile bar services specialist! We bring together over 10yrs of experience in all aspects of hospitality across several countries.