Put some thought into organising the drinks at your party. Whatever the occasion or the style of the event, guests expect to have their thirsts quenched.

Decide whether you want to buy in beverages or have a caterer provide them. If you're buying the drinks, do you intend to mix and serve them yourself or hire bar and serving staff? If not, will beverages be part of the catering package, or will you have a mobile bar come to you?

Don't leave bevvie-buying till the last minute: you don't want to be paying local bottle-shop prices, and smaller liquor outlets generally carry a narrower range of stock.

Beverages to suit your party style
There are literally thousands of different drinks you can serve at your party - which do you select?

Some celebrations call for special drinks such as tropical cocktails/mocktails, fruit punch, mulled wine or sangria. For sit-down dinners, you'll want to match wines to your menu. A cocktail do requires a cocktail list and many ingredients. And of course, you'll need champagne: what celebration is complete without it?

Beverage suppliers
Opt for a specialist liquor retailer, if you want help selecting wines or cocktail ingredients; or a large outlet with an extensive range of beers, wines and spirits, so you can one-stop-shop.

Source liquor suppliers by going online or visiting their retail stores: check out stock, specials, prices and their delivery costs and service before deciding where you'll place your order. Take service into account, too. Can staff give advice on cocktail recipes? Matching wines to menus? Can they source imported spirits or rare vintages?

Mobile bars
Get the bar to come to you! These days, you can hire a staffed, state-of-the-art mobile bar for your indoor or outdoor do, making serving drinks a fuss-free operation. All you have to do is specify what drinks you want the bar to stock and serve.

Opt for a slick stainless steel bar, or an excitingly themed one - some mobile units can transform size, shape and style to suit your occasion.
Mobile bars come with full bar service, and professionally trained, licensed bartenders who can do anything from pull a beer to concoct an exotic cocktail (some are award-winning cocktail makers). They'll also dress to suit your party style or theme.

This chapter continues in Party Magazine