Custom Wedding Cocktail Ideas
Cheers!
Who doesn’t love a great, hand-crafted cocktail?
(Virgin cocktails with no alcohol can also be fantastic, just ditch the liqueur in each recipe and choose a tasty substitution ).
An open bar can get pricey fast, especially if your 2nd cousin has a taste for gin fizz (and let’s just say, she get a little ‘fizzy’ by nights end!).
Beer and wine are staples of the wedding reception, and if you want to also offer cocktails without opening the bar up as a free for all, the cocktail recipes that I’m sharing below can be made batch style and are sure to be a hit.
You might consider offering two distinct cocktails, where you each share your personal favorite and guests can order the ‘brides cocktail’ or the ‘grooms cocktail’.
There are thousands of ideas on Pinterest, or you can always ask the bar service you’ve hired for suggestions! They might be able to make something unique and fun, just for you, and you’ll surely get to do a taste test (win-win!).
Custom Wedding Cocktail Ideas
Look to ‘themes’ for inspiration!
Summer weddings call for crisp, light, fresh cocktails highlighting citrus and berry flavors.
Winter weddings are a great place to share warm cocktails - not just in temperature, but in spice. Cinnamon, nutmeg, and warm creme’ come to mind.
You can even be inspired by your wedding colors! In a clear glass, that tropical sunset cocktail may be a perfect fit for your friendly coral color scheme.
Image by Keri Gehi Photography
Blackberry Lime Vodka Cocktail
This cocktail is rich in color (perfect for a jewel-toned wedding!), fresh, and crowd-pleasing.
Smashed blackberries
Sugar and a pinch of salt
Vodka
Fresh berries to garnish
Warm Apple Margarita
This one is perfect for those weddings at the end of summer, when fall is around the corner and warm afternoons are followed by cool evenings by the fire pit.
Tequila
Apple Cider
Lime juice
Simple syrup or Agave Nectar
Cinnamon
Line the rim of the glass with cinnamon sugar (use the lime to wet the rim of the glass first), and then dip sliced apples into cinnamon sugar for the garnish.
The DIY Bloody Mary Station
This wedding cocktail option is particularly well suited to brunch weddings!
Guests are invited to create their own Bloody Mary from a spread of crisp veggies, citrus, pickles, olives, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, shrimp, smoked salts, fresh cracked pepper, hot peppers, and an assortment of interesting hot sauces.
Yum!
Classic Champagne Cocktail
For a little sparkle and fizz, you can’t go wrong with one of the oldest cocktail recipes still being celebrated.
Sugar
Bitters
Champagne
Lemon Twist Garnish
Sangria
Sangria is the classic that sticks around for a reason! It can be made with red or white wine and looks absolutely stunning when crafted in bulk and displayed in clear pitchers.
Orange juice
A crisp fruity red or white wine
Sugar or simple syrup
Brandy
Triple Sec (optional)
Fresh fruit (anything goes! Citrus, berries, apples, whatever you can find in season)
Bonus: the subtle addition of cinnamon or nutmeg spice can warm up a Sangria from Summer to fall, and for a winter wedding, add some pomegranate or cherry juice and serve warm!
Coffee Ice Cream Cocktail
Want to save the best for dessert? Surprise your guests with a round of coffee ice cream cocktails!
Cold coffee
Coffee Liquor
Vanilla creme or Irish cream liquor
Simple syrup
Ice cream (have fun with this! Vanilla, chocolate, cherry amaretto, Oreo, or coffee bean ice cream can all work beautifully).
Send me a note! We can grab a drink and chat weddings - I plan weddings in Colorado, Mexico, and beyond and would love to give you some more great wedding cocktail ideas, too!
Colorado wedding vendors featured in this post:
Elevate Photography
Keri Gehi Photography
Brianne Haagenson Photography