On average, most beer takes up about 1/3 of all the adult beverages served at a wedding (wine and liquor consuming the other 2/3). When you’re surrounded by options for decor, cake, and entrees, choosing the right suds can be an overlooked element.
Deciding what kind of wedding beer to serve is one of the top 3 most important things about the planning process.
Your wedding day is all about devoting your life to another person and then celebrating that agreement. Like really celebrating—a lot of people are looking to party at the reception.
However, some are not; for every frat boy, ready to consume a deplorable amount of alcohol, there’s a grandpa for will consume none. It’s hard to determine how much alcohol you’re going to need for your guests.
With an overwhelming amount of options and the multitude of flavors of beer, knowing how much and of what kind and may sound like an impossible decision to make. From light wheat beers and dark ales to hop-heavy IPAs—we’re here to help with that.
How Much to Purchase/Order
A rule when considering quantity is one drink per adult per hour. This may sound like it could be too little for some or too much or others but typically it turns out to be just right (often more than enough).
You could purchase a keg(s)—which holds about 160 beers. Typically this only makes sense if you plan on just serving beer at your wedding; however, it also makes sense if you want to serve draft beer (which people like on tap) and buy smaller kegs.
It’s important to remember that the time of day, week, and month play a part in pricing. If your wedding is in the late spring or early fall (when the weather is nice), the demand for wedding-related things (such as beers) will be higher—you will have to pay more.
Best Wedding Beers
Having a diverse selection from the following categories will help you to please the majority while also catering to the connoisseurs.
1. Local/Craft Beers
People always love being introduced to a good local brewery; for those guests who are out of town or just would otherwise never come across them, local/craft beers are another thing to remember.
2. Domestic Beers
For example, Miller High Life, Bud Light, Rolling Rock, and Yuengling are some top-rated beers in the country.
3. Imported Beers
Corona, Modelo, Heineken, and Dos Equis XX are some of the best-selling imports.
4. Seasonal
In the spring and summer seasons, lighter and brighter beers are appropriate and readily available as opposed to autumn and winter, where you’ll see more porters, amber ales, and stouts.
5. Alternatives (Cider/Sessionals/Non-alcoholic)
Session beers are low in alcohol by volume, so you can drink a lot of them. Not everyone comes equipped with an iron beer belly. A session pilsner from Notch or an IPA like Lagunitas DayTime or Founders All Day. On the other hand, guests may just want something different, so consider a cider such as Angry Orchard to switch things ups.
Drink Up
Once you’re fully stocked, remember, this is your day. Your guests have all the wedding beer they need to enjoy themselves; now that all your bases are covered just focus on you and your spouse. Congratulations!
If you’re looking for more informational articles on weddings and special celebrations, Check out the rest of our site!
