A shot of orange

When planning your wedding, it can be fun to coordinate with your bar caterer to come up with a cocktail or two that match the colors or something specific to your wedding. Since BarBop is based in Tennessee, this month we’ll be looking at a few ideas for showing your love of the Volunteer State, starting with a few cocktail suggestions. Ask your bar staff if they can whip up one of the following for you to enjoy:

Think of Tennessee and alcohol, and you think of Jack Daniels, so what better way to celebrate matrimonial bliss than with a little Southern Harmony for the wedding party:

Mix 1 ¼ oz Jack Daniels with ¾ oz Southern Comfort and 4 oz of sweet and sour mix. Add a splash of 7Up and pour over ice. Serve with a lemon wedge.

Or how about a Tennessee Julep for those hot summer evenings:

Cover about 12 mint leaves with 1 tsp powdered sugar and a few drops of water. Smash the mint up a bit and put half of the mint in a julep cup. Half fill the cup with crushed ice. Add 1 jigger Tennessee Whisky and 1 jigger Apricot Schnapps. Add the rest of the crushed mint and some more ice.

You’ll notice one more thing these have in common. That’s right. A Tennessee cocktail has to have something orange in it if you’re a Vols fan.

One drink that looks bright and sunny and would be perfect on a sunny day is a Tennessee Peach:

Blend 5 oz canned peaches in syrup. Add the juice of 2 limes, 3 oz Tennessee Whiskey, 2 tbs sugar and some ice. Blend together and pour into 2 tall glasses. Top with whipped cream.

Finally, if you want something orange, not featuring whisky, but still a little different, try a Red Surf:

Shake together the juice of 1 orange, 1 measure Vodka, ½ measure Noilly Prat Red, a dash of lime juice and 1 tsp Grenadine. Serve over ice with a cherry.

Of course, these are just a few ideas. Talk to your bar caterer before your special event and they will be able to work with you to come up with something different for your celebration.

Fiona Young-Brown

An Alternative to Wedding Favors

Wedding favors – pricey little things aren’t they? And how many weddings have you been to where, at the end of the evening, little bags of candied almonds or books of personalized matches are littered across the tables, destined for the trashcan?

I went against the grain and didn’t have any favors. Guess what – no one even noticed. When people are having a good time at your wedding, the last thing they are interested in is whether you’ve given them a small container of bubbles.

I know there are lots of brides who want to have favors for their guests, but they want something a little different. So how about some of the following ideas:

If you’re having a themed wedding, choose a favor to match the theme instead of something generic. Even candy can be a little different. Beach wedding? Chocolate starfish and shells. Halloween? Choose little candy skulls. A Japanese themed wedding can have mini cherry blossom dishes. You get the idea.

Are guests going to be fighting the heat of an outdoor summer wedding? Give fans as favors. Not the usual, cheap ones you see being handed out for free at festivals. Go for something elegant that guests will be pleased to use. Alternatively, if it’s a beach wedding, use palm fans. The design can match the wedding party colors.

Will you have a lot of guests coming from out of town? Think of a local product you could use - miniatures of bourbon for a wedding in Kentucky. Tiny bottles of bbq sauce in Texas. Trust me – there won’t be any of those left on the table.

Instead of given the guests a small gift, use the money budgeted for favors and make a charitable donation. You can then make little tags for each place setting letting them know that a donation has been made in their name to your favorite charity.

The trick with wedding favors is to be creative. Have fun with them and give guests something that matches your personality.


Fiona Young-Brown

A wedding gift you must check into

Hands down one of the neatest event ideas I have seen.

Sheila Kurtz is a master graphologist who assembled a team of graphologists, psychologists, computer programmers, and more to form graphology consulting group. This company analyzes handwriting. Sheila has spoken all over the world, analyzed for a variety of events, and was even called in to help the New York Jets communicate better.

I just recieved my writing analysis, and the easy to read report described me perfectly. Also, it noted some possible things that may benefit me in the future. My report revealed insites into my thinking patterns, imagination, goals, achievments, and emotions. Personally, I am a very skeptical person about pretty much everything, but the proof is in the pudding. I recommend this idea to anyone looking for unique wedding ideas, event entertainment, or their own use. Click here to get more information about this unique wedding idea.

Fun lemonade stand wedding bar

Surely, one of my very first mobile bar experiences had to be the time I set up a lemonade stand, for my mother's big garage sale back in the late 80's. As a way to make a few extra nickles, I created a well equipped umbrella shaded, fresh lemon packin, only 5 cents a serving, lemonade stand. What fun it was to create that advertising sign, "Made in the shade and stirred with a dog's hind leg". Some of you may not have had the chance to do this as a child, but either way, you have probably seen or visited one.

This was the source for one of our mobile bar creations last summer. Our version featured a little more than your typical non-alcoholic lemonades, but you can make it work both ways. We started off with a 4' table and covered it with a disposable yellow plaid table cover. Next, we filled a huge glass vase with fresh cut limes and strawberries. Just behind the bar area we placed a huge shady umbrella over the entire table, sat our bartender in a chair, and put him to work behind the blender. Ofcourse, we topped this all off with a custom sign that you can view above. If you need a custom designed bar idea for your event be sure to give BarBop.com a call.

Wedding bar drab or fab?

Your may or may not want your wedding bar to be the focal point of your reception. Most couples will state something like "make it classy" or "I want elegant" when imagining their bar, no matter how much attention they want it to bring. It's very easy to add "curb appeal" to your bar with or without a budget.


Big budget weddings can employ any number of items from large center peaces to custom built bars. Some companies, like BarBop, offer custom designed light bars, high bars, and more. Also, many rental companies can supply you with alternative designs. Another idea is to offer an ice bar like the ones from SpecialtyIceCarvings.com. The possibilities are almost limitless these days with so many new styles of wedding vendors competing for business.


Ofcourse adding the features above are nice, but what if you don't have that kind of budget? No worries, it's easy to snazz up low budget bars as well. Adding a floral design with height is a great way to put life into any bar. Also, you can use what you have. For example, if your serving wine all night, don't just keep the extras in a box and wait for them to be used. Line the bottles up along the front of the table. The bar to the left used unopened wine bottles and a simple large vase filled with limes to add a nice touch to the front. The rear table used a simple wooden slab stacked on 2 evenly cut oak stumps.


Either way you look at it, snazzing up a wedding bar is easy and there are numerous options available. Some simple points for any bar design are to leave a clean center area for guests to get drinks and keep items organized throughout the night. You want the bar to look nearly as good as it does at the end of the night, as it did at the start. If you have some great wedding bar tips or ideas please post them below.

Wedding Budget Bar Ideas

With today's economy, the question of "what's less" is no surprise to me. Many people are calling to ask what they can do to keep bar costs down. I say there are just 2 levels of bar service being beer and wine or full liquor bar. Actually, this is what all of our packages are based on as a result. For the sake of the reader I'll keep this information basic. If you need more detailed information just write us.

Beer and wine bars are the least expensive bars to operate. Ofcourse one could have a champagne only bar, but the majority of our customers, usually request beer and wine as a minimum. You can expect to spend $7 per guest and up, as a rough estimate, on the basic beer wine reception bar. Keep in mind that these numbers are a minimum and elaborate beer wine bars can get much higher. In order to keep your costs down be sure to buy large bottles by the case and don't offer too many selections. Offer any selections you wish but 2 beer and 3 wine types will usually suffice.

Liquor bars are not as cost effective and will run about $12 per guest and up. Although it may seem like a simple upgrade, it's not. Your main cost increase will come in the form of buying the extra alcohol. Liquor is simply much more expensive than beer and wine. Also, many more items are required like mixers, garnishes, and shaking supplies. When serving liquor bars you will need additional bartenders for less people as opposed to a beer and wine only bar. However, the rewards of a full liquor bar can be very fun and offer lots of extra excitement.

If your looking to bridge the gap between these two then you may consider a featured drink of some sort. This way you can offer one or two cocktails with beer and wine. While this may not save you a bundle it can help. Sometimes offering a feature drink can land you somewhere in the middle of the two. If you need help with designing your own bar package call BarBop toll free at 1.800.260.6039 or get us online at http://www.barbop.com/.

Wedding reception, cons and pros!

While working a job a few weeks ago, a bride stopped by the bar to chat. It was later in the evening, everyone was having a great time, music was going, people were dancing, and all of the sudden the bride hits me with a question. "Andy you must have seen hundreds of these, if you ever get married, what will you do?"

Actually, this a question I have thought of before, so it was pretty easy to answer. First thing you have to consider is that this does not take any kind of budget into account, so in real life, much of this would probably not happen, but hey here goes.

1. I would have a live band instead of D.J.
I don't know why! I have seen hundreds of D.J.s. Most of them are great and they have done absolutely nothing to get on my badside. It's just after seeing weddings day in and day out, I really enjoy the live music much more.

2. I would definitely do a toast.
Seems like now days many people are skipping out on this. Ofcourse, who would notice more than the guys on the front lines? BarBop haha. I think this is an inexpensive, memorable, and fun thing to do. Im a bartender so that may have something to do with my thoughts.

3. My grooms cake would be crazy.
I have thought this one out well. First, it will be chocolate with tons of icing. Second, it will be the transformer Optimus Prime. Third, he will be slicing my brides cake in half. Ok, I may not get away with 3, but it sure sounds funny to me. One wedding I worked had a chopper hanging from the ceiling with the groom reaching out from the side, for his bride to be as the wedding topper. Now that was fun!

4. I would not be involved in the planning at all.
I think most grooms would be fine doing some of the leg work, but I do it everyday, and would'nt want to work at my own wedding. Furthermore, after knowing what I know, I would never have a friend provide the bartending service. That's not a company pitch, it's just pure honesty.

5. I would absolutely want finger food all night long.
A non-stop barrage of different treats. I mean non-stop, all night long, yummies! I love snackin on that junk, and usually they only last about 30 minutes, then their gone.

Anyways, there you have my wedding wishlist. Most of it fits my humerous lifestyle. So in a nutshell, yours should too! Oh yea, one thing I constantly see is bridesmaids complaining about their feet, taking off their shoes on the dance floor, loosing shoes, and stepping on things without them. I would definitely tell my bride to buy some cheap slippers for the girls.

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