How to Make a Mother's Day Cocktail Cart

Why not invite the female population over to your place to celebrate motherhood? Widen the circle to include grandmothers, godmothers, aunties and mother figures—the more estrogen in the room, the better! Once you've gotten them all together, get them a cocktail, quick—but don't think that you have to do all the pouring—set up a bubbly beverage cart to back you up. Here are steps to a bubbly Mother's Day celebration.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bar Cart or cart on wheels
• Table that can double as a bar if you don't have access to a cart
• Champagne or all purpose glasses
• Assorted clear glass pitchers
• Sparkling wine
• Champagne bucket or large bowl
• Thick cotton white napkins
• Ice
• Specialty juices
• Drink tags

1. Start by finding the "bones" of the project: the cart (or table if you can't get your hands on a cart). Check out Target.com and enter keywords "cart bar" to see a collection in all price ranges. (See Resources below for some more ideas.)

2. Visualize the cart (or table) as a self-service experience and walk yourself through making beverages. Then start setting up the cart.

3. 

   Fill the large bowl or several champagne buckets with ice and bottles of sparkling wine. Drape a folded white napkin or cloth over the neck of one of the bottles for guests to dry the condensation that will build up on the outside of the bottles.

4. 

   Fill the clear glass pitchers with amazing juices like pure Valencia orange, peach papaya mango, raspberry acai, pomegranate blueberry and peach nectar (to make the traditional Bellini). Print tags with the names of each juice; hole punch them and tie to the handle of each pitcher. Visit tropicanapure.com to check out their new line of luxurious (but well-priced) juices.

5. 

   Tie mom-inspired drink tags to each champagne flute and leave some blanks for guests to write their own:
   
   * "Innies run in our family"
   
   * "My daughter has my laugh!"
   
   * "I was in labor for 36 hours—I deserve a cocktail!"
   

6. 

   As guests arrive, invite them to the cart to mix up a cocktail. Word of the bubbles will spread faster than gossip at a beauty salon. The reason you made it mobile is so you can wheel it over to anyone not having a great time—just watch as their faces light up when you park it next to them for a custom beverage! Even the virgin choices on the cart are decadent, so don't worry about putting anyone on the spot!

Tips & Warnings

• Since you are mixing the sparkling wine with juice, you don't need to go all out with expensive bubbly. Use Prosecco and California sparkling wines instead of French champagne.
• You want to have two numbers handy for all parties at your place where alcohol is consumed: 1) A reliable taxi service and 2) A service that will bring an extra person with them to drive your guests' cars home; they'll be less likely to attempt to drive drunk or buzzed if they know they don't have to do the "walk of shame" the next day to get their car.

Resources

• Cocktail Carts
• Bar Gear