Showcasing Signature Style with Signature Cocktails

Often, brides go beyond selecting a colour palette and instead choose to tell a story with their wedding. This can include personalized centerpieces, fabrics, and decorative embellishments. The intention is to use details to make this momentous day truly unique to the bride and groom. When planning, visuals tend to take center stage and consideration for the other senses can fade into the background. Studies show, however, that memory is heavily linked to smell and taste and, though many people put much thought into their menu selections, what’s most often overlooked – and a feature that can greatly refine the theme – is your choice of beverages.

Alcoholic Alchemy

Unfortunately, some of us lack the skills to make anything more complex than a scotch and soda. Thankfully, the universe has gifted us with mixologists, whose very calling in life seems to be to invent fanciful drinks to delight and satisfy any preference. Mixologists, generally, are people who have studied the craft of mixing drinks and have refined techniques used by traditional bartenders. Much like a chef, they’re pros when it comes to blending flavours, and many are adept at creating custom drinks for special events, either by reinventing classic cocktails or dreaming up new and innovative ones.

Custom Flavours & Personal Taste

Flavour is a versatile thing and can tell a story, evoke memories, and spark emotions. Offering unique cocktails is a way to develop the theme and enhance the atmosphere. Remembering the way you met or the moment you fell in love, and bringing that into your choice of cocktails can elicit a beautiful nostalgia for you, and give your guests a glimpse at the path the two of you have chosen to walk together. Did you meet at a coffee shop? Try coffee and tea infused cocktails. Did you get engaged at the beach? Go for “tropical” flavours with the taste of summer.

A Colourful Palette to Delight your Palate

If incorporating a story is a little too avant garde or complicated – let’s face it, sometimes just getting the invitations taken care of is work enough – just designing your cocktail menu to complement your colour palette can be a beautiful touch.

Do you have your “something blue”? Try a liberal blend of vodka and Blue Curacao, splashed with cranberry juice, shaken with ice, and garnished with a lime wedge. If you’ve already got your blue covered, not to worry! It’s undeniable that white is always a classic choice for wedding colours, and can easily be employed into the cocktail menu, without compromising flavour – a fact easily proven with the Godiva Chocolate Martini. A beautiful blend of Godiva white chocolate liqueur, Amarula Cream liqueur, and Gosling’s Black Seal rum. To blend, shake over ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Its decadence simply must be experienced to be believed.

It’s important to remember, however, that the traditional white wedding isn’t for everyone, and many weddings palettes use bold and bright hues. With strong colour choices to work with, it can be difficult to find a way to implement these choices into drinks, as most mixers tend to either be clear like vodka or rich dark brown like rum. In instances like this, don’t be afraid to experiment with different flavoured and fruity liqueurs. Curaçao, the line of Crème flavours, Schnapps, and others can offer both fun flavours, but beautiful looking beverages.

And there’s always the idea of incorporating your floral choices into your cocktails. A newer trend that’s swept into the wedding industry is floral-infused cocktails. Creating a Sangria Flora is a simple infusion of fresh fruit – peaches, strawberries, raspberries, and white grapes – soaked in dry white wine and elderflower liqueur. Garnished with micro marigolds, it’s an absolutely gorgeous creation incorporating fresh natural ingredients.

Be the Champagne Toast of the Town

Cocktail hour doesn’t have to be the only fancy way to enjoy your brilliant beverage creations. Another detail that is overlooked and tends to stay traditional is the champagne toast. Instead of opting for classic champagne, this is another chance to show your creativity. There are many different ways to class up this already classy drink: from dramatic changes, like adding flavoured liqueurs, to simple garnishes. For a subtle twist on the usual champagne toast, you can add a little extra flair with a Classic Champagne Cocktail – a bubbly take on the Old Fashioned – just place a sugar cube in a chilled champagne flute, add two or three dashes of bitters, fill the glass with champagne, and squeeze a lemon twist on top. Gorgeous!

Creating your wedding’s signature cocktail is an amazing way to tie in the many elements of your design, and with so many flavours and styles, the possibilities are endless!