Selecting the Right Beverages For Your Event

Selecting the Right Beverages For Your Event

Selecting the right food for your event is important, but choosing the right beverages is just as important and a detail you don’t want to overlook!

Finding unique drinks to accompany your food can enhance the entire experience so if you’re trying to find the right beverage for your event, let these ideas inspire you.

Keep It Simple

What could be more simple than water-dressed with elegant add-ins

Here’s a cost-effective way to hydrate your guests by simply adding vibrant fruits and herbs to water pitchers for a hint of flavor and a dash of colour.

A few favorites are :

Cucumber + Strawberry + Basil,
Lemon + Raspberry,
Blackberry + Mint,
Cantaloupe + Watermelon + Honeydew,
Pineapple + Ginger,

Creative Drinks,

If you want to offer non-alcoholic beverages, consider choosing a creative, signature drink to serve.

You can offer “the usual” pop drinks, but here are some ideas beyond that :

• Your favorite Lemonade, Raspberry, Strawberry, etc.
• Have an Italian soda bar where guests can mix their own flavours,
• Create up a signature punch that compliments the flavours of your food,
• Choose a drink that reflects you – something like RedBush Tea,
• Coffee & Tea Bar,

Especially appropriate when your food selection is limited to dessert, a coffee and tea bar can be fun to create. You could hire local baristas to serve lattes, or keep it simple by serving brewed coffee and a selection of teas.

Here are our tips on creating an awesome coffee bar :

• Serving coffee and tea from local companies always adds interest,
• Offer a variety of cream and sugar options,
• Offer a “signature drink” such as vanilla or mocha,
• Beer & Wine

Many people enjoy beer and wine, so it’s hard to go wrong with these options. However, they do add cost so these tricks will help you save money while still offering your favourite beverages :

Offer a red and a white wine such as Rieslings and Sauvignon Blanc as they are good white options, while Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz are good red options.

Beer is a more cost-effective drink to serve

If your event is small – bottles or cans of beer in a cooler might be best, so contact a local micro-brewery or drinks retailer for pricing on their kegs, cans, beers, wines.

Cocktails

Attending an event with an open bar is fun, but is an expensive beverage option. However, depending on the event, this may be something important for you to include.

If you want to serve cocktails, take the following suggestions into consideration :

Cut costs by serving a signature drink

If appropriate for your event, give each guest a limited number of drinks tickets they can redeem at the bar to keep costs down (and reduce the chance of intoxicated guests!)

Be sure you know your local laws concerning licenses to sell and serve alcohol and comply with them and don’t have an open bar – hire professionals!

A few final words of advice on choosing the right beverages for your event …

Don’t feel like you have to offer everything, choose beverages that best accompany the food you’re having and the type of event you’re hosting.

Also, keep in mind your audience when trying to choose the right beverages for your event, as an example, a family-oriented event could probably do without alcohol altogether; beer and wine at a work event might be appropriate – Top Tip – feed your guests before serving them alcohol!

So there you have it – and as you can see, choosing the right beverages for your event can be tricky!