Kelly & Casi · Wedding Bar · Recommendation by Redwan
Fewer bottles.
Better ingredients.
Keep the drinks guests expect, drop what won't be poured, and redirect that value toward a smaller, more versatile set of ingredients — at roughly the same cost.
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Complete bar tab
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Per guest, {{ guests }} guests
6 → 6
Bottles substituted
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Cocktails to plan for
01 — Objective
This is not intended to become a complicated craft-cocktail bar. The approach is to preserve the familiar drinks guests expect, remove bottles that are redundant or unlikely to be poured, and redirect that value toward a smaller number of versatile ingredients.
The upgraded inventory supports the couple's signature cocktails, a zero-proof option, a late-night Irish coffee service and a broader range of classic drinks — while staying practical for high-volume wedding service.
The guiding principle is simple: fewer redundant bottles, better ingredients and greater flexibility behind the bar.
02 — Substitutions
Six out, six in
Not more premium — more useful, less redundant
Captain Morgan
→
Appleton Estate Signature
Covers the same orders — rum and Coke, highballs, Daiquiris — and mixes better.
$23
Cuervo Gold
→
Banhez or comparable mixing mezcal
Patrón already covers tequila. Mezcal carries the signature Paloma.
$35–40
Crown Royal Apple
→
Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
Required for the Manhattan; also Negronis, Boulevardiers, Americanos.
$20
Amaretto
→
Campari
The highest-utility ingredient on the list — see section 06.
$27
Crown Royal / Malibu
→
Monkey Shoulder or comparable Scotch
Adds a missing category instead of a fourth approachable whiskey.
$30
Kahlúa
→
Irish coffee ingredients, fresh citrus, batching supplies
Demerara syrup, coffee, cream and nutmeg — no espresso martini program required.
—
Retail prices are reference values only. The venue purchases commercially and applies its own package economics.
03 — Inventory
The final back bar
Coral = added
Keep — already in the package
Tito's
Grey Goose
Tanqueray
Hendrick's
Bacardi
Bulleit
Patrón Silver
Jameson
Jack Daniel's
Add
Appleton Estate Signature
Mixing mezcal
Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
Campari
Monkey Shoulder or comparable Scotch
Angostura bitters
One optional personal bottle
Blanton's
A special pour, because Casi likes it
One Islay Scotch
For guests who enjoy smoke — limited, not the primary Scotch
No Calvados, Cognac or Armagnac: they add complexity without supporting the program.
Assumed standard stock
Dry vermouth
For the Martini. Basic enough that any bar should already carry it — listed here so nothing is assumed silently.
Glassware
Rocks
Tom Collins / highball
Nick & Nora or Martini
Heatproof cup — Irish coffee
Wine
04 — The menu
Signature wedding drinks
The only drinks planned and provisioned in volume
Manhattan
Bulleit · Cocchi · Angostura
150 planned
Mezcal Paloma
Mezcal · grapefruit · lime · soda
180 planned
Zero-Proof Paloma
Grapefruit · lime · soda · salt
35–40 planned
Irish Coffee
Jameson · demerara · coffee · cream
50 · late-night only
On the printed menu
Signature names from the Grateful Dead songbook
Fire on the Mountain
Mezcal Paloma
05 — Capability
What this inventory unlocks
Not a second menu, and not a forecast
Negroni
Tanqueray · Cocchi · Campari
Americano
Cocchi · Campari · soda
Boulevardier
Bulleit · Cocchi · Campari
Rum Highball
Appleton · ginger beer or soda · lime
Rum & Coke
Appleton or Bacardi · cola
Scotch Highball
Monkey Shoulder · soda
Daiquiri
Bacardi · lime · simple
Gimlet
Tanqueray · lime · simple
Tom Collins
Tanqueray · lemon · simple · soda
Margarita
Patrón · lime · simple
Old Fashioned
Bulleit · demerara · Angostura
Also possible
Whiskey Sour · Jungle Bird · Negroni Sbagliato · Martini · Martinez · Campari Spritz · Moscow Mule · Gin & Tonic · Cocchi and soda · zero-proof lime rickey and pineapple cooler
These drinks do not all need to appear on the printed menu. The point is that the revised inventory gives the bartenders substantially more flexibility using a smaller and more coherent set of bottles.
06 — Campari
Why Campari matters
Campari is one of the highest-utility substitutions in the bar. With one ingredient, the bar can make Negronis, Americanos, Boulevardiers, Sbagliatos, Campari sodas and rum-and-grapefruit drinks.
It works across gin, whiskey, rum, mezcal and sparkling-wine formats — which is why replacing Amaretto with Campari materially improves the bar without adding complexity.
Gin
Whiskey
Rum
Mezcal
Sparkling wine
Soda
Operational requirement
3 bottles
for ~70 Campari drinks
Open two to start and hold the third in reserve. Campari is supporting inventory — not a separate signature-drink program.
07 — Service
Batching and service
Speed at {{ guests }} guests comes from what is pre-mixed
Manhattan — spirit, vermouth, bitters
Negroni
Boulevardier
M&M — mezcal and Montenegro
Irish coffee — whiskey and demerara syrup
Mezcal Paloma — spirit and grapefruit components
Zero-proof Paloma base
Rum-based citrus drinks
Club soda and sparkling water
Grapefruit soda
Champagne and sparkling wine
Fresh citrus where practical
Coffee and whipped cream
Fresh ingredients — high-level quantities
The venue already stocks these — provisioning guide for ~{{ target }} cocktails, venue to confirm
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Limes · juice & garnish
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Grapefruit juice
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Pineapple juice
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Simple syrup
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Demerara syrup
Irish coffee — late-night service only
Dead Rabbit-style · not a full-time bar item
Per drink
1 oz lightly whipped cream
Unsweetened · nutmeg over the top
3.5–4 oz hot coffee
Fresh brewed, added at service
1⅔ oz batch
1 oz Jameson + ⅔ oz demerara
Service
1Batch into a preheated glass
2Add hot coffee, stir
3Float lightly whipped cream
4Grate fresh nutmeg
Requires on site
Reliable hot coffee
Heatproof glasses
Refrigerated cream
Demerara syrup
Fresh nutmeg
Never hold coffee in the batch — it oxidises and loses temperature. Cream stays cold and separate.
08 — Plan it
Build your cocktail selection
Pick the drinks, set the servings — the bottles and value update as you go
Planning target
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cocktails
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Estimated bottles required
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Total bottles
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Live summary
Cocktails selected{{ selectedCount }}
Total servings{{ totalServings }}
Specialty bottles{{ totalBottles }}
Bottle value{{ bottleValue }}
Mixers & ingredients{{ mixerValue }}
Retail-equivalent{{ totalValue }}
Existing bar tab{{ barTabText }}
This is a planning estimate only. The venue's commercial pricing and package substitutions will be different. Bottles are rounded up and include the 10% contingency.
Send this to the venue
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09 — Economics
Budget and net effect
The complete venue bar tab is expected to be approximately {{ barTabMoney }}, including product cost, venue markup and service structure. Across {{ guests }} guests, that is approximately {{ perGuestMoney }} per guest.
The relevant question is not the gross retail price of the proposed bottles. It is the net cost of substituting them for bottles already included in the premium package.
The specialty-inventory value for the chosen scenario is calculated live in section 08 — change the servings there and the bottle count and retail-equivalent figure below the selector update with it.
The retail-equivalent value of the specialty cocktail inventory is not necessarily an additional charge on top of the existing bar package.
Several products — Bulleit, Jameson and other core spirits — are already included in the premium package, and the proposed bottles replace Captain Morgan, Cuervo Gold, Crown Royal Apple, Malibu, Kahlúa and Amaretto. The venue should calculate the net substitution and volume cost, not add the full retail-equivalent total to the existing ~{{ barTabMoney }} bar bill.
What this estimate covers
Approximately {{ target }} cocktails only. Beer, wine, sparkling wine and standard mixed drinks made from the venue's existing vodka, gin and tequila are not included.
The exact bottle mix may shift with guest preference — the venue should be allowed to open reserve bottles progressively rather than the entire allocation at the start of service.
10 — Request to the venue
What we are asking for
Proposed substitutions
Captain Morgan
→
Appleton Estate Signature Blend or Hamilton Jamaican Pot Still Black Rum — these two only, not Blackstrap
Cuervo Gold
→
Banhez Mezcal or comparable mixing mezcal
Crown Royal Apple
→
Cocchi Vermouth di Torino
Malibu
→
Monkey Shoulder or comparable Scotch
Kahlúa
→
Amaro Montenegro
The full list — before and after
Original package
Gin
Tanqueray · Hendrick's
Rum
Captain Morgan · Bacardi · Malibu
Tequila
Patrón Silver · Cuervo Gold
Whiskey / Scotch
Crown Royal · Crown Royal Apple · Jameson · Jack Daniel's
Cordials
Bailey's · Kahlúa · Amaretto
Revised — substitutions and additions applied
Gin
Tanqueray · Hendrick's
Rum
Bacardi · Appleton Estate Signature Blend or Hamilton Jamaican Pot Still Black
Tequila / Mezcal
Patrón Silver · Banhez or comparable mixing mezcal
Whiskey / Scotch
Crown Royal · Jameson · Jack Daniel's · Monkey Shoulder or comparable Scotch
Cordials / Amari
Bailey's · Campari · Amaro Montenegro
Vermouth / Bitters
Cocchi Vermouth di Torino · Dry vermouth · Angostura bitters
Supporting
Fresh lime & lemon · Grapefruit & pineapple components · Simple & demerara syrup · Club soda & mixers · Garnishes
Struck through = comes out · red = new to the package · everything else carries over unchanged
Selected cocktail program
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Total cocktail servings
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{{ programMix }} · adjust the selection in section 08 and this recap updates with it
Bar setup confirmation
Please confirm the existing package includes everything required to execute the selected drinks:
Appropriate glassware
Sufficient cocktail-quality ice
Cocktail tools and equipment
Capable bartenders
Fresh lime and lemon
Pineapple and grapefruit components
Simple syrup
Club soda and required mixers
Garnishes
Refrigerated storage
Zero-proof ingredients
Can the venue accommodate the proposed substitutions and additions within the existing bar package, provide the complete bar setup and ingredients required, and reliably serve the selected cocktails at the planned volumes?
This request covers the cocktail program only — beer, wine and sparkling service continue under the existing package unchanged.