How to Throw an Easy Backyard Bash
We have you covered from decor and drinks to crowd-pleasing recipes and covetable grilling gear.
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Building the Bar
Beverages for your backyard bash or intimate gathering shouldn’t be an afterthought. Local wine and service professional and Vineyard Road sales rep Leah Winship shares her entertaining tips for building the perfect outdoor bar.
When planning a party, always strategize the bar setup; it’s best that the bar be located at the opposite end of the entry, so folks can spread out and avoid clogging the area where guests are arriving. I also like this to be on either side of the cooking station. When guests are hungry or thirsty, they make a beeline for where food and drinks are stationed, so this is my strategy for herding hungry cats while preventing overcrowding.
The second step to producing a welcoming beverage menu is to have something for everyone. Avoid big-name brands so guests won’t analyze your spending and plan to have something to sip that they don’t know they love yet. Find wines that are approachable, which includes stocking both red and white varieties, plus beer and something non-alcoholic for those who don’t imbibe. A seltzer water such as Spindrift in a quirky flavor like cucumber or a classic kitschy brand like Orangina work as a nice refreshing novelty and can also be used in a creative signature cocktail.
When choosing beverages, it’s important to go with products that flatter food, but also have options for all tastes. For instance, you may love sauvignon blanc, and it may be right with summer tomatoes, but some guests may only drink Chardonnay.
Chardonnay drinkers are stubborn, they know what they like and don’t care to bend. It’s a chameleon: a red wine in a white dress. Today, the staple is a style with some oak and a buttery taste, something a little rich and deep. Choose a variety from the Macon in Burgundy, such as Manciat Poncet’s Mâcon-Charnay. These wines will be powerful people-pleasers while showcasing a different version from the typical California big brand with a classic twist.
It’s courteous to serve at least two varieties of beer. A lager style and an ale style are suggested; I enjoy a low ABV for lager so those who are thirsty can be quenched yet not drunk, such as Harpoon’s Rec League. For ale, I go with a local IPA, maybe something from Proclamation Ale in Rhode Island, which will give the local beer nerds something to talk about.
Red wines are necessary in any gathering, especially when serving steak. For the summer, I recommend a glugg-able juice that can be chilled with whites in the cooler — a thirst quencher that hits everyone’s tastes. Two come to mind that are personal favorites: Love You Bunches from Stolpman Vineyards in California is a wine that has the flirty, young and fun disposition you want for your party, and J.C. Clair from G.D. Vajra, which is a nouveau-style nebbiolo, hits every big red fan’s taste buds with ease, tannin, sophistication and bold fruit. Sometimes this wine has a natural frizzante and, for me, there’s nothing sexier than red bubbles with ribs.
Rosé is here to stay, but trends naturally change. Domestic wine makers deserve a chance, such as Rhode Islander Dan O’Brion from Cranston, who moved to Sonoma to start Gail Wines and is making beautifully rich, salty, strawberry rosé from mainly cabernet franc.
The best part of summer 2021 is that we can be around others again, which is why I am most excited about opening all the large formats of fine wine I have saved all year. A magnum (1.5 liter) is equal to two bottles of wine; eight glasses in total. The wines, when stored carefully in bottles of this size, can last double the time. They also become a power party trick and make for a great display when entertaining. Personally, I can’t wait to finally open all the magnums of grower Champagne I have been saving for when I can finally see my friends again this summer safely outdoors while enjoying a barbecue bash. Follow @leahship on Instagram for more fine wine tips.
Cocktail Time
Mix up two fun drinks created by Corey Hayes, director of food and beverage at the Wayfinder Hotel and Nomi Park, a new summer stay-and-play hotspot in Newport. 151 Admiral Kalbfus Rd., Newport, 849-9880, thewayfinderhotel.com
Courtesy of Wayfinder Hotel and Nomi Park.
Lit Juice (left)
1.5 oz Thai chile-infused
Lunazul tequila
.75 oz Hypnotic
.5 oz passion fruit puree
.5 oz lime
2 dashes bitters
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a glass with fresh ice.
Mezcal Momma (right)
1.5 oz Banhez mezcal
.5 oz lime
2 oz jalapeño-honey-pineapple syrup
Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a glass with fresh ice.
Where to shop for fine wines and craft beer:
The Savory Grape, 1000 Division St. Unit 130, East Greenwich, 886-9463, thesavorygrape.com
Charlestown Wine and Spirits, 4625 Old Post Rd., Charlestown, 364-6626, charlestownwineandspirits.com
Campus Fine Wines, 127 Brook St., Providence, 621-9650, campusfinewines.com
Town Wine and Spirits, 179 Newport Ave., Rumford, 434-4563, townwine.com
Vicker’s Liquors, 274 Bellevue Ave., Newport, 847-0123, vickersliquors.com
