# Wine bar marketing: posts for tastings, menus and evenings [Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/wine-bar-marketing) A wine bar sells an evening, not a bottle. Here is how to make your posts, menus and event graphics feel like the room itself: low light, good glasses, something new to try. ## The short version - Wine bar marketing works when every post, menu and poster carries the same mood as the room: low light, warm darks and calm type. - A tasting event post should name the theme, the date, the time, how many wines and how to book, in that order. - A by the glass list is easier to read when wines are grouped by style and each has a short description in plain words. - A weekly rhythm of posts, such as new bottles on Tuesday and the weekend list on Friday, gives regulars a reason to check in. - Google Business Profile posts at 1200×900 pixels help people searching nearby see what's on tonight. Effective **wine bar marketing** sells the feeling of an evening with you. Give every post, menu and poster the mood of the room: deep wine colours, warm candlelit tones and calm, legible type. Then use that look for three things on repeat: tasting events, the current by the glass list and a simple weekly rhythm that tells regulars what's new. A few posts a week that all feel like your bar beat a daily stream that looks like anyone's. ## A wine bar colour palette taken from the glass The colours are already on your shelves. Claret, garnet, the amber of an orange wine, the pale copper of a rosé, the warm brown of an old cork. Build a palette from them, add one ink colour for type, and use it for everything. - Claret: #3d0f1a - Garnet: #6e1f2e - Orange wine: #c9783a - Rosé: #e8b9a4 - Candlelight: #f3e6cf - Cellar: #1a1412 Six colours from the glass and the room. Cellar and Candlelight do most of the work; the wine colours mark different evenings and styles. - Claret by candlelight: `radial-gradient(circle at 50% 30%, #6e1f2e 0%, #3d0f1a 55%, #1a0a0e 100%)` - Orange wine evening: `radial-gradient(circle at 50% 30%, #e0975a 0%, #a85a28 55%, #4a2410 100%)` - Rosé terrace: `radial-gradient(circle at 50% 30%, #f6dccd 0%, #e8b9a4 55%, #b9806c 100%)` - Cellar dark: `radial-gradient(circle at 50% 30%, #3a2c24 0%, #1f1814 55%, #0d0a08 100%)` Backgrounds for different nights: a red evening, an orange wine flight, a summer rosé list and the everyday dark. Dark backgrounds suit a wine bar, but they need light, clear type. Avoid thin script fonts at small sizes: they look romantic on a laptop and illegible on a phone held in a dim room. [Dark colour palettes](https://gradiently.design/guide/dark-color-palettes) and [burgundy gradients](https://gradiently.design/guide/maroon-gradient) have more shades to work with. ## How to promote a wine tasting event A tasting has limited places, so the post has a simple job: make the theme sound worth an evening and make booking easy. Put the facts in the order people check them. 1. **Lead with the theme** "Natural wines of the Loire" or "Six skin contact whites". Specific beats "Wine tasting night". 2. **Then the date and time** "Thursday 15 October, 7pm" on the second line. 3. **Then what's included** How many wines, whether there's food, who is pouring. 4. **Then how to book** Link in bio, reply to this story, or ask at the bar. One route is better than three. 5. **Remind, then report** A story when a few places are left, and a recap the morning after with the wines you poured. If you run tastings often, give them a recurring name and a fixed slot, such as "First Thursday" or "The Sunday flight", each with its own colour from the palette. A series is easier to promote than a string of one off events: people learn the name, regulars plan around it, and every new poster only needs the theme and the date changed. A portrait wine bar event post for a tasting of six skin contact whites on Thursday at 7pm with small plates The feed post: theme first, then when, then what's included. A vertical story reminding followers that a few places are left for the Thursday wine tasting The reminder story, in the same look, two days before. For posters in the window, an A4 at 2480×3508 pixels is plenty. [Event recap posts](https://gradiently.design/guide/event-recap-post) has ideas for the morning after, and [restaurant social media posts](https://gradiently.design/guide/restaurant-social-media-posts) covers the food side if you serve small plates. ## Wine by the glass menu design people can read Your by the glass list is your most useful piece of content. It changes often, it gives people a reason to visit and it is easy to share. Group it by style, give each wine one line of description, and keep the producer and region in smaller type. | Style | Wine | In one line | | --- | --- | --- | | Sparkling | Crémant de Loire | Dry, appley, very easy to like | | Light white | Muscadet | Salty and fresh, made for oysters | | Skin contact | Orange from Friuli | Apricot, tea, a little grip | | Light red | Gamay | Juicy red fruit, lovely slightly chilled | | Bold red | Douro blend | Dark fruit, smooth, good with cheese | A by the glass list grouped by style, with plain descriptions. The same structure works on Instagram, a printed A5 menu and a chalkboard. - **Instagram**: the list as a 1080×1350 post, or a carousel with one style per slide. - **Printed menu**: A5 at 1748×2480 pixels fits a table without crowding it. - **Screen behind the bar**: 1920×1080, updated when bottles change. [Digital menu boards](https://gradiently.design/guide/menu-board-design) covers layout. ### Puts people off - "Notes of garrigue, graphite and forest floor" - Wines listed by region only - Producer names larger than the description - The list posted as a photo of a chalkboard ### Invites people in - "Herby, dark fruit, good with lamb" - Wines grouped by how they taste - The description first, details smaller - A clean graphic that matches your look ## A weekly rhythm for wine bar social media Regulars come back when they know something will be new. A simple weekly pattern, kept for months, does more than bursts of activity. - **Tuesday**: a new bottle, with one line on why you chose it. - **Wednesday**: the week's events, or the next tasting. - **Friday**: the weekend by the glass list. - **Sunday**: a quiet story from the room, with permission from anyone in shot. Do not forget the people searching nearby. A Google Business Profile post at 1200×900 pixels with tonight's tasting or the new list shows up where people look for somewhere to go. [Google Business post size](https://gradiently.design/guide/google-business-post-size) and [local business marketing](https://gradiently.design/guide/local-business-marketing-graphics) explain how. A landscape Google Business post announcing a Gamay newly on the by the glass list, on a deep wine coloured background A Google Business post at 1200×900, in the same look as the Instagram posts. All of this is a lot of formats for a small team. In Gradiently you can design the list once on a Mark, a living background in your bar's colours, and a Pro plan resizes it to the story, the Google post and the screen behind the bar in one step. Claim a Mark nobody else holds and only you can export with it, so the mood of your posts becomes yours alone. > **Check the rules on alcohol posts** Alcohol marketing is regulated in many countries, and social platforms have their own policies on alcohol posts, ads and giveaways. Check what applies where you trade before you boost a post or run a competition. ## FAQ ### How do I promote a wine tasting event? Post the theme, date, time, what's included and how to book in one clear feed post, follow with a reminder story when places are running out, and share a recap the morning after. ### What should a wine bar post on Instagram? New bottles, the by the glass list, tasting events, food pairings and quiet moments from the room, on a steady weekly rhythm. ### What colours suit a wine bar brand? Deep wine colours such as claret and garnet, warm candlelight neutrals and a near black, with light type for contrast. ### How should a by the glass menu be organised? Group wines by style, such as sparkling, light white, skin contact and red, and give each one a short plain description before the producer and region.