Those serving alcohol- What would you pick?

[Amanda.Rx]

Hello!

One of the benefits of my venue is that we can bring our own alcohol, but that also makes it difficult to choose! We were planning on doing just beer and wine, with a specialty cocktail. So keep it simple, we were going to choose:

- 2 types of wine (red and white)
- 3-4 types of beer (FI LOVES beer)

Do you have any suggestions for what is most popular? What are you choosing?
IE: Reds- Chianti, Merlot, Cabernet, etc.
IE: Whites- Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, etc.
IE: Beers- Lager, Amber, Wheat, etc.

 

[ladypirate]

If you're only going with two types of wine and you aren't big wine drinkers I'd probably do a merlot for the red and a chardonnay for the white. It depends on you and your guests though. If we were going to do two wines, we'd probably do a Pinot Noir and a Sauvignon Blanc because that runs more with our palettes.

ETA: As far as beer, maybe do one light beer (maybe a lager?), something in the middle like an amber ale and something darker like a porter or stout. If you add a fourth one, maybe do something a little different like a hefeweisen, bitter or IPA?

 

[Octavia]

Our red wines were a pinot noir (light) and a shiraz (full-bodied). Our whites were sauvignon blanc (dry) and riesling (sweeter). The reds got consumed roughly equally, but the riesling was a big hit. I can find the brands/varietals, if you're interested.

Our beers were an Oktoberfest (we got married in October, after all!), Sam Adams Light, and Franziskaner (most of our friends are wheat beer fans). We also had limited hard alcohol (vodka and rum) but people mainly stuck with the wine and beer.

ETA: after reading ladypirate's post, I just wanted to add that we specifically stayed away from merlot and chardonnay because we don't like wines with an oaky taste. At the very least, I'd do one unoaked wine (you can get some unoaked chardonnays, but I've never had one that was very good).

 

[iheartscience]

Our whites were Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Riesling. For reds we did mostly Pinot Noir and also Shiraz. (I don't think we did a Merlot.)

We were told to go heavier on white wine than the red wine by several people (wedding was in July), and I listened even though I knew most of my friends prefer red. Sure enough, we ran out of reds and had plenty of white left over! So think about your crowd and what they'll want-don't just listen to the caterer/wine person.

We did 3 beers-Blue Moon, Yuengling and Corona Light for a light choice. Most of our friends like Blue Moon and Yuengling so the Corona Light was for the grown ups!

Blue Moon and Yuengling were pretty much neck and neck as far as left overs. We bought less Corona so we had less left overs.

We also served different flavors of margaritas, so if you're not doing a liquor I would definitely beef up your wine and beer choices.

 

[shertz1981]

This is what I would do ...

Whites: Sauvignon Blanc (the ones from Marlborough, New Zealand, are beyond heavenly), a nice crisp Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris for something lighter but not as sweet as Riesling. If the SB and PG are too similar for you, stick with the SB and go for a nice Semillon

Reds: I would do a lighter-bodied one (Beaujolais), a medium-bodied one (Merlot or Shiraz, and I personally prefer Merlot), and a robust, biting Cabernet Sauvingnon.

You might also want to switch out one of the whites for a rose ... mmm.

I have no advice about beer. Maybe a light, a medium-bodied, a dark stout like Guinness, and something specialty loved by your fiance?

 

[charbie]

we did a merlot and a pinot grigio.

then for beers we did: miller light, amstel light, corona, and then smirnoff assorted flavor pack.

i thought it was a nice mixture, everyone got drunk. haha!

 

[purselover]

I would probably pick at least 2 reds and 2 whites to offer more of a variety since you''re not really doing any liquor. I would do a merlot, a cabernet, chardonnay, reisling, and then perhaps a sparkling wine or champagne. I know nothing about beer so I''m no help there! For reference we''re having 6 types of wine, 3 types of beer plus an open bar and custom martini bar.

 

[elrohwen]

I''m with LadyPirate on all of her suggestions.

What kind of wine do you and your FI drink? What do your friends drink? If nobody''s really into wine, I would go with maybe Chardonnay and Merlot, or Pinto Grigio and Merlot. However, if you guys drink more wine and would like something a little different, I would do either Suavignon Blanc or Riesling for the white, and either Pinot Noir or Syrah for the red.

For beers, I also agree that you should get one light, one medium, and one dark. For the light beer, you could go with a typical American light like Coors or Bud. Or you could do something a little different like Blue Moon which is a white beer. For the medium I would do something like Sam Adams or maybe a red ale. And for dark something like a stout or porter maybe - though both of those are very dark, so if you guys aren''t really into craft beers maybe go with another variety of medium weight beer like an IPA maybe.