The Beer Thread

[cardinalkarp]

I guess this is as good a place as any to talk about this.

I'm in charge of providing the booze for my wedding reception. There'll be I dunno like 200-300 people. I was thinking of doing it this way: 150 bottles of wine. Roughly the equivalent of 1000 1.5 oz servings of various liquors and then beer. Do roughly 200 bottles of beer on ice (probably Sam Adams, Stella and Miller Lite). I figure people will drink that early on. Then 1 or 2 kegs of Bud Light or Budweiser. I figure those that just want beer will stay with the keg beer and others will move on to wine or liquor. But, I don't want to have any keg beer leftover as it obviously doesn't keep. So, I'm leaning towards only getting 1 keg.

If its alot of friends of yours (and they drink like you do) one keg will probably last 45 for 200-300 people. That's not even close to enough beer imo

[jim]

I have gotten to the point where I enjoy an IPA once in a while, but I just can't drink there every day or even every week. I have really settled into what I think is a nice core group of beers that I generally have 2-4 of these stocked in my fridge:

PBR - a cheap American beer that tastes like water after an IPA but on it's own is really good, especially on a Saturday afternoon with lunch.
Tecate - This is my go-to Mexican beer, maybe because we have a large population of Mexican people this is very easy to find and cheap. I bought a case Wed. for $16. To me it's better than Corona and cheaper - I lime it up like I will a Corona
Bohemia Clasica - Another Mexican beer that I really enjoy.
Sam Adams Boston Lager - popeye got me on to this.
IPA - Right now it's Ranger in the fridge, but I'll vary.

[lukethedrifter]

I guess this is as good a place as any to talk about this.

I'm in charge of providing the booze for my wedding reception. There'll be I dunno like 200-300 people. I was thinking of doing it this way: 150 bottles of wine. Roughly the equivalent of 1000 1.5 oz servings of various liquors and then beer. Do roughly 200 bottles of beer on ice (probably Sam Adams, Stella and Miller Lite). I figure people will drink that early on. Then 1 or 2 kegs of Bud Light or Budweiser. I figure those that just want beer will stay with the keg beer and others will move on to wine or liquor. But, I don't want to have any keg beer leftover as it obviously doesn't keep. So, I'm leaning towards only getting 1 keg.

Why get bottles and kegs? I got some really nice drinkable-for-anyone craft beer kegs from the locals, Schlafly and Perennial.

Also, isn't that a lot of damn booze for 300 ppl?
1/2 btl wine/person
3-4 shots/person
approx 2 beers/person

We laid out some cool bottled sodas as well.

[AWvsCBsteeeerike3]

It's a longer reception. 7 hours. So, 1 drink per person per hour is just over 2k drinks. So 750 glasses of wine. 1k cocktails and almost 400 beers.

Bottles bc I like good beer at the beginning and dont wanna buy expensive kegs that may not get drank. In my mind everyone will start w a couple bottles of beer before moving onto highballs or gin and tonics.

[Freed Roger]

Get a keg o Kraftiig - it will never run out.

[jim]

I guess this is as good a place as any to talk about this.

I'm in charge of providing the booze for my wedding reception. There'll be I dunno like 200-300 people. I was thinking of doing it this way: 150 bottles of wine. Roughly the equivalent of 1000 1.5 oz servings of various liquors and then beer. Do roughly 200 bottles of beer on ice (probably Sam Adams, Stella and Miller Lite). I figure people will drink that early on. Then 1 or 2 kegs of Bud Light or Budweiser. I figure those that just want beer will stay with the keg beer and others will move on to wine or liquor. But, I don't want to have any keg beer leftover as it obviously doesn't keep. So, I'm leaning towards only getting 1 keg.

I just skimmed the numbers and didn't process them, but when you say something like "I am leaning toward" then you need to lean the other direction. Double it, at least. 2-3 kegs is my recommendation.

[Freed Roger]

I concur on leaning towards more kegs beer. It's going to be hot part of the year, right? One Budweiser, a bud light(or select) and try to find something semi-crafty but not esoteric, like a leinenkugals.

at our soirees, we've ended up with craploads of wine left over. Hell, I could send you a dozen bottles unopened. It's either all or nothing on wine. If it's hot out -roll out the barrel. a half bottle wine per person is way too much when a good portion of people will be drinking beer.

As for hard liquor - I'd make that a cash bar hard alcohol (hire bartender) and that solves the quantity issue there. Society in general isn't as tolerant with hard liquor as the past. Seriously -you don't want your wife's cousin's wife pounding vodka sprites all day and puking. If it's a seven hour affair, drinking beer will help dampen the pace of flameouts

[lukethedrifter]

Especially for a marathon thing like you have planned, I would put out a tub of something like these to supplement the liquor.



Or nehi. or small glass bottles of coke.

plus maybe pitchers of sweet tea and lemonade.

Even the drinkers will take a break from the grind of getting [expletive] to have something like that.


Don't know what you have available your way but around here you could get a keg of Perennial Southside Blonde and a Schlafly Summer Lager or Civil Life has some really nice, fairly low ABV beers. Not hoppy. Nice summer drinking beers.

[jim]

Craft beers? For GUESTS? A fool and his money are soon parted. 2 kegs of Busch, 2 of Nat Light and call it a day.

[AWvsCBsteeeerike3]

Thanks for all the recommendations. It's a day wedding with a reception following. So, reception from 3-10...in October, so should be ideal weather.

I can get alcohol/wine for cost. And, alcohol/wine can be kept if not used which is nice. Kegs can't. And, I can't get them at cost, and between paying for the keg, buying a tub to keep the keg and ice in, buying the ice, renting a tap, having to return it, it's easier to not deal with it at all. The more I think about it, the less I even want to deal with them and want to just buy a ton of cases.

ltd, we'll have drinks. Going with an aqua fresca thing of sorts for the kiddos and also margarita mix. Plus the caterer is providing non-booze drinks, including lemonade and tea. And, of course, being in october, I assume the cardinals will be playing, so we'll have a tv off in a backroom to watch the game