Cocktail Party

• It’s best to feature one signature alcoholic drink, such as the Berry Mojito, and one mocktail, such as the French Pear Mocktail. Make it easier on yourself by preparing a large quantity of these in large pitchers or beverage dispensers before the party and letting guests shake them with ice when they arrive
• Set up a bar area featuring staples so that guests may enjoy the drinks they like best. This should include beer, wine, and liquor—vodka, rum, gin, and whiskey—and mixers such as cranberry juice, club soda, dark cola, and tonic water. Remember garnishes such as lemon, lime, and orange wedges, and necessary bar tools including an ice bucket, cocktail shaker, corkscrew, and bottle opener. Be sure to provide a selection of nonalcoholic drinks for any nondrinking guests as well
• Ideally, wine should breathe for at least 45 minutes prior to being enjoyed. Well before guests arrive, put a couple of opened bottles of white wine on ice and decant a couple of bottles of red wine
• Keep beer accessible to guests by placing bottles in large beverage buckets with ice
• For assistance in figuring quantities for your party, use a drink calculator

• Buffet-style is ideal for a cocktail party. If you’re inviting a large number of guests, consider a two-sided buffet to keep traffic moving freely
• For a vintage cocktail party feel, use silver trays to display hors d’oeuvres and bottles at the bar
• Cocktail napkins are a must. Add a special touch to your soirée with personalized cocktail napkins
• Invite guests to the buffet table with centerpiece ideas such as these—
  • Consider using stemware as bud vases for the table. Line up several martini glasses and place flowers with stems removed or floating candles in each
  • Bring the warmth of candlelight to the table in keeping with the posh ambiance of a cocktail party by displaying this Fire and Water centerpiece

For a holiday cocktail party—

• Create a winter wonderland on the buffet table with a white tablecloth and multiple rosemary topiaries shaped like evergreen trees. For a dusting of “snow,” sprinkle a bit of powdered sugar atop and in between each tree