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A producer’s buyer guide
Choosing a beverage production team.
Choosing a beverage production team starts with the assignment, not the biggest name. Decide whether you need a creative collaborator, a featured bartender, or a team accountable for getting the entire beverage experience into the room.
917-553-5409. Have a date or an early idea? Start there. Book a conversation if you prefer.
I publish this guide and offer beverage-production services through JL Cocktail Co. This is a provider-authored shortlist, not an independent ranking or an exhaustive directory. Profiles are alphabetical. Competitor descriptions summarize the linked public pages reviewed September 12, 2026, not private proposals or confirmed availability.
Write the assignment before comparing names.
- Creative development: Who translates the brand or event concept into drinks, zero-proof options, presentation, and guest interaction?
- Production: Who owns prep, staffing, equipment coordination, service planning, and the beverage handoff to the venue?
- Personal involvement: Is the person you are meeting developing the menu, appearing at the event, leading the crew, or providing oversight? Put that in the scope.
- Local responsibilities: Identify the parties responsible for alcohol supply, permissions, insurance, and venue requirements. International work needs this conversation early.
A memorable cocktail and a well-run bar should support each other. Ask each team to explain how its creative proposal will work during your busiest service window.
Three profiles to understand.
Charles Joly
Charles Joly’s public site presents cocktail expertise, education, and event appearances; his press and events page invites inquiries about appearances and events (Charles Joly, Press & Events). His 2020 biography lists Academy Awards and Emmys mixology credits, alongside his Crafthouse product work (published biography).
Clarify in your brief: Whether you are commissioning personal participation, creative development, a hosted experience, or a broader production scope. Historical credits do not establish availability for your date.
Jason Littrell
My practice brings together creative beverage direction and the team to execute it. The assignment can cover cocktails and zero-proof, prep and batching, staffing, service flow, and onsite beverage leadership. I am based in New York and available for global commissions, with local requirements and production partners agreed for each engagement.
Clarify in your brief: What your existing producer and venue already own, what you want the beverage experience to contribute, and where you need my personal involvement. See the beverage-production scope, or call or text me directly.
Liquid Productions
Liquid Productions lists Andy Seymour as founder/owner and Leo DeGroff in bar and systems design and video production (Liquid Productions team). Its published services span high-touch production, beverage strategy, trade engagement, and innovation, including staffing, onsite production, and festival and cultural activation planning (Liquid Productions, What We Do).
Clarify in your brief: Which service line and team members would be assigned, who owns the local production responsibilities, and what the proposal includes through close-out.
Where Andy Seymour and Leo DeGroff fit.
Andy Seymour and Liquid Productions should not automatically be treated as two unrelated vendor options: the firm’s team page identifies him as its founder/owner (Liquid Productions team). Leo DeGroff appears on that team and is also described by Beverage Alcohol Resource as the proprietor of the beverage consultancy Prince Cocktail (Liquid Productions; BAR Associate Partners).
When a person has more than one affiliation, confirm the contracting entity and the people actually assigned to your event. A public biography is useful context, not a staffing commitment.
Match the team to the event.
- Festivals: Ask about peak arrivals, prep and replenishment, crew leadership, site access, and the relationship between public bars and sponsor experiences. Explore festival beverage production.
- Brand activations and pop-ups: Start with what guests should experience and remember. Then connect the concept to the serve, interaction, footprint, and service pace. Explore experiential beverage activations.
- Awards and VIP hospitality: Establish the service windows, backstage access, guest privacy, and coordination with the ceremony or reception producer. Explore awards and VIP beverage production.
Compare proposals against the same brief. Separate creative fees, staffing, product, equipment, travel, local partners, and close-out responsibilities before deciding whether two quotes cover the same job.
Questions before the first call.
Should I hire cocktail talent or a beverage-production team?
Hire for the work you need covered. A named appearance or menu-development brief is different from staffing, prep, bar logistics, and live service. Ask the provider to state exactly which responsibilities are included and who leads onsite.
What should I send for a first conversation?
Start with the date, city, event format, approximate guest count, and the experience you want to create. Share what the venue or existing producer already covers. An unfinished brief is enough to start a conversation.
Does this guide rank the providers?
No. The profiles are alphabetical and unranked. Jason Littrell publishes this guide and offers services in this category. Compare each provider against the actual scope, team, availability, and responsibilities your event requires.
Tell me what you’re making.
If you need an entire event agency, a celebrity appearance alone, or product supply without creative production, say that upfront so we can establish whether my scope fits. If you need a creative beverage team, call or text with the event, city, and date.
Building the brief first? Use the Cocktail BEO Builder or choose a time to talk.
