Planning your wedding bar with Salud Bali
So you’ve come to the fun part and need to start planning your wedding bar for your big day?!
Where do you start? How many drinks will each guest have? What should go on the menu?
Start here, as we talk to the super experienced Salud Bali (wedding bar legends) about all of these questions (and more), plus custom cocktails and which ones to choose, what bar companies supply for your Bali wedding and what you may need to bring yourself. Plus, is it worth the stress of trying to bring all of your own alcohol into Bali duty-free?
We talk about the beer options besides the uber-famous Bintang and what sort of wines are available to you. We ask them all of the questions we hear from our community and deliver the answers straight to you!
Let’s take you through how best to plan your bar for your wedding day with Salud Bali, your guests will love you for it, read on.
Where do I start with planning our wedding bar?
Identifying your preferences, as well as your guests, focusing on cocktails, quality, and the variety of spirits and wines, and looking into the desired flow of service is essential. When it comes to choosing a bar catering company the best way to get to know the people who will be serving you on your day is to organize a tasting session and meet in person to taste the drinks, feel the glassware and discuss all the aspects. If you don’t have a chance to visit Bali before your wedding, organize a Zoom call. We find building trust and a good relationship between the couple and the vendor very important. It just makes you more confident on the day so you worry less and focus more on what’s important; creating everlasting memories!
Do I have to have cocktails?
Just remove “do” and “?” and you will have your answer right there 🙂 Cocktails are one of the brightest and funnest ways to elevate your celebration. Also, it’s an endless opportunity for creativity which will surprise your guests with that wow factor that’s unique to your day. We always let our clients have as much input as they’d like, and they challenge us by adjusting cocktail looks, names and menu designs. The whole process from the day we meet with our couples for a tasting until the actual party is so much fun for us!
How much alcohol do we need?
Our services are based on a free flow format for the whole night of your celebration, meaning whatever we agreed upon to add to the menu will be available from the start to the end of the party. To manage this, we always bring more ingredients than we initially need but that saves us in case most of the guests will go more heavy on one spirit/cocktail. Estimating the amount of ingredients/spirits/beers/wines for a wedding is a balancing act and requires experience. Based on the couples preferences our goal is always to give the client a price per person that will meet their budget and then once agreed we make sure you won’t be short.
Can I create custom cocktails?
Absolutely! And you should get as creative as you can. Don’t miss the opportunity to have more input and personality in your day. You can always change or request particular glassware, and adjust drinks, garnishes and names. The sky’s the limit when it comes to cocktails and how they look and taste.
What are the most popular cocktails?
From our experience, it’s been margaritas and their all possible variations; spicy, slushy, fruity, you name it!
For Bali weddings, tropical drinks are always a hit. Pina Coladas served in coconut shells for reception, passionfruit cocktails, and guava & rum drinks are also popular.
We also like to make twists on classics such as Spritzes with locally crafted tropical aperitif Limo instead of Aperol, Moscow Mule with ginger & jackfruit shrub, and Mojitos with coco de nata.
Do you supply everything we need?
Yes, we do! And even more. We provide everything from professional and efficient bar set up that comes in several different design modifications to all the ingredients, bar equipment, highly qualified bartenders and bar waiters who make sure our service and attention to details is top notch.
You can also rely on us if you or your guests may need some spirits, wines or beers delivered to your villa before or after the wedding.
Are there other beer options besides Bintang?
With the boom on the local craft beer scene there are many more options these days.
Our packages have choices of entry level Bintang & Heineken and better quality beers such as Island Brewing & Kura Kura.
From Lagers to Ales to limited-release Sours we have something for everyone’s taste.
How many wines do we need? What kind should we have?
There are several options. We would highly recommend going for an imported wine selection as the Bali climate is not suitable for producing decent wine quality. But that also comes with a slight price increase as Indonesian taxes on alcohol are quite high. We often see people being surprised by comparing prices of the same wines they’re used to drinking back home.
Another option available is wines that are made with Australian grapes and shipped to Bali frozen, then vinified here on the island. This allows local producers to make better quality wines than they would be able to make from locally grown grapes and save on taxes.
Also, when it comes to event flow we usually suggest our clients have wine available only during dinner time when our waiters are passing wine bottles around and pouring it at the table. This helps to minimize the amount of bottles and save some budget without compromising the offering.
What are the best non-alcoholic options?
Our welcome drinks menu usually includes raspberry & elderflower- and passionfruit lemonades. We also love offering fresh coconut water of course.
Usually, straight after the wedding ceremony, we pass around trays of sparkling wine served in champagne glasses to all the guests. Recently we’ve discovered a fun drink that we serve to non-drinkers too. We carbonate clarified green apple juice and serve it the same way as sparkling wine or champagne. It’s fresh, crisp, and slightly acidic and will remind you of cider that just doesn’t have that alcohol kick.
Should we suggest that guests bring a bottle duty-free for us?
When it comes to bringing bottles of spirits or champagne from abroad it is possible, however, there are limits and customs are quite inconsistent with their regulations. It’s said that 1 person can bring 1L of alcohol into the country. So if you have a special bottle of spirit or some of your favorite expensive champagne you can always bring it and let us look after it for you on the night. But when it comes to trying to bring enough bottles to cover your whole celebration we would suggest avoiding this stress.
So much amazing info from the Salud Bali team to ensure you have the best wedding bar possible on your big day. Lots of incredible ideas for tasty cocktails and having better quality wines at your wedding in Bali. You now know that bringing in all of your own bottles of alcohol will probably cause you a lot of unnecessary stress and it’s much better to leave that coordination to the professionals. But, if you want to bring a few bottles for the event, go for it. Just remember, it’s usually 1L per adult coming into Bali.
I think it’s time to schedule a tasting session as all of this talking about delicious drinks has made me a little thirsty. For more information or to get in touch with Salud Bali, head to their listing on The Bali Bride directory HERE!
