Wedding bar - what am I missing?

[Crolisd]

Our wedding will be in a barn and we are doing our own bar. So I need to stock it well to make sure everyone is catered for. Here is my list of the basics:

White wine
Red wine
Champagne
Lager
A craft ale
Gin (Gordon’s)
Rum (Havana club)
Vodka (Smirnoff)
Malibu
Cider
Fruit cider

Coke
Diet coke
Tonic
Lemonade
Sparkling water
Orange juice
Cranberry juice

Lots of ice and chopped lime/lemons

Would there be something on this list for you? What brand preference would you have for the lager/beer/cider? What other soft drinks would you have?

@fruitbrewhaha

Not gordons or smirnoff, get something a bit better. See whats on offer.

Save money by buying prosecco instead of champagne and use the savings to buy the nicer spirits. Make sure you get decent tonic too, not supermarket cheapest brand.

Malibu? That is a bit of an odd one. DO you know people who drink it, Koko kanu is a nicer version of coconut rum.

Beers, there are so many to choose from. Maybe look for a local brewer to you and buy direct. No one really drinks larger, its all IPA these days, maybe Neck oil? It's also very trendy to have cans now, they have much improved the taste. So you could buy in lots of different ones, brewdog are very popular and often on special in the supermarket.

No one really drinks lager? I'm pretty sure they do.

Ditch the spirits. Beers, wines, soft drinks, and maybe jugs/jars of Pimms or cocktail. Cans of g and t?

Inform people what you are providing and if they want to bring any spirits or anything different they can.

Jack daniels.

I hate anything fizzy, so unless there's a tap with drinking water, (I'd be happy with that) bottled still mineral water.

No one really drinks larger, its all IPA these days

Lager is a hugely popular drink. Where do you live that nobody drinks it?

Are you having bar staff or will people help themselves? Is it professional bar staff or friends?

I did something similar for mine and we had loads left. Personally I would keep it simple.
Red, white and rose wine
Sparkling wine
Lager
Ale
Gin
Whisky
Vodka
Lemonade
Coke
Orange juice
Cranberry juice
Water

Otherwise you'll spend a fortune and there will be loads left. You might only have one person on Malibu and one person on something else. You can't please everyone and as long as you have the basics it'll be fine.

That's a good selection, the only thing I would suggest to add is pimms.
That said, i think you have too much on offer. If it was me I would do wine - sparkling, red, white, rose, beer/cider and pimms (soft drinks and water). Pretty much everyone will drink something off that list

A variety of craft beers. There are different types and some people like IPAs, others stouts etc. You can buy mini kegs which contain about 8 pints. Or a mixed box of cans. Steer clear of Camden and Goose.

Definitely non-alcoholic beer, cordials -I’m partial to lime and soda - and tea and coffee. Only you know your guests, but a lot of people, young and old, I know don’t drink alcohol.

If I was you I’d just get Coke Zero instead of both Diet Coke and regular Coke.
Whiskey or brandy for after the meal

John smiths or similar?

If budget is a factor, any sparkling wine would be good, doesn't need to be champagne, just have champagne for the toasts. You only need one type of beer, and Pimm's would be better than Malibu. Make sure you are very well stocked with soft drinks, and they do not need to be the main brands, really noone cares. I would argue that you don't need the vodka or rum etc as people may get too drunk, too quickly, I would stick with beer, wine, cider, Pimm's and plenty of soft drinks

We had our wedding in a barn and did a free bar. As it is free, people don’t mind if there’s not a huge selection. Also, get too much different stuff in and you will end up with lots left over!!

Our bar was:

2 types white wine
2 types red wine
Prosecco
Cider (cans)
Lager (cans)
Bitter (cans)

Coke
Diet Coke
Lemonade

No spirits - just too much faff!

I’ll add that we got all the wine and Prosecco from Aldi! Everybody thought it was great!

Peach schnapps (or any flavour really)

Spirits and shots? Depends on your guest list I guess

Whisky
Sambuca
Tequila

Some AF beers?

Definitely rose wine, I had 9 at a wedding yesterday 🤫

Pimms?

I think you’ve got loads of options (possibly too many). For a DIY bar I did at a wedding it was just: ale, cider, (both local) red wine, white wine, juice, cola, lemonade, sparking water, still water and I don’t think spirits are a requirement personally (and I normally drink neat gin out of choice). You know your guests, for example I don’t know anyone who drinks larger over ale, nor fruit “cider” (which I find is essentially an alcoho-pop).

DO NOT dump full fat and diet coke for Coke Zero - sweeteners, bleeuughh!

Definitely tea and coffee.

Many establishments won't serve hot drinks after 9pm for "health and safety" which really pisses off teetotallers/drivers. So, as you're not restricted by rules like that, definitely hot drinks.

Pimm’s for welcome drink and Prosecco for toasting we’re the other things. And tea and coffee. If getting ale consider cask (firkin) as it tastes better, just remember it needs to settle before you open it (ideally take to the venue the day before). Keg beer and cider doesn’t need to settle.

Diet tonic