Wedding Blog > Featured Vendors

A Moment With ‘The Vintage Bar Co.’

ABIA meets talented Queensland bartender Cody Coulton, director and joint-owner of this caravan bar and mobile wedding beverage service.

Wolf & Goose

An idea, hatched during Covid lockdown, quickly took shape when Cody Coulton discovered an old caravan.

“We found ‘Frankie’, our caravan bar, in Melbourne and had it shipped to Townsville where we transformed her from a coffee van to a mobile bar,” Cody explains.

Twenty years in the hospitality industry gave Cody the confidence and knowhow to establish his dream of a mobile beverage service for weddings, and several years on The Vintage Bar Co. is serving up bespoke wedding beverages at celebrations throughout south-east Queensland — including Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast, the Gold Coast and Byron Bay — and has established a franchise in Townsville.

ABIA pulled up a bar stool to find out more about the business’ mobile bars, carts and caravan, its BYO and inclusive beverage packages and the wedding cocktail Cody says is trending at the moment.

Wolf & Goose

Tell us about your business and wedding services.

The Vintage Bar Co. is a bespoke mobile bar business that caters to weddings and events across south-east Queensland and Townsville.

We operate out of 10 different custom-built mobile bars, including our caravan bar ‘Frankie’ — an original 1960’s Australian-built Furness caravan, which is currently the only one of its kind still registered in Australia.

How did you get started in the wedding industry?

I’ve been in the hospitality and event industry for more than 20 years, and one day during Covid I came up with an idea to create a mobile cocktail bar to cater to private events in Townsville.

Together with my business partner Alex Jones, I found ‘Frankie’ the caravan bar in Melbourne and had her shipped north, where we transformed her from a coffee van into a mobile bar.

We initially launched our service in Townsville, but recently moved to south-east Queensland.

Wolf & Goose

Minchio Brothers

Where are you based and what locations do you service?

We’re based in Brisbane and cater to events from the Sunshine Coast to Byron Bay.

When they heard about our intended move, one incredible couple approached us with an offer to franchise our business to keep it in Townsville too, so now The Vintage Bar Co. services both the south-east Queensland region and Townsville in the north of the state.

What types of beverage catering do you offer?

Beer, wine, cocktails, mocktails — if you can drink it, we will serve it! We do have a passion for crafting tasty cocktails though.

Images Minchio Brothers

What beverage menus and packages do you offer for couples to choose from?

We are licensed, so have the flexibility to offer our couples both a range of inclusive beverage packages and BYO packages for their wedding celebrations.

Can couples come up with their own drinks' menu and incorporate their own ideas?

Yes, we love it when couples create their own signature drinks! We have had cocktails named after dogs, cats and even kids.

Images Wolf & Goose

What are your most popular packages and what drinks are trending at the moment?

BYO is our most popular drinks package for weddings, as it helps couples select a beverage menu to fit their budget.

And the most popular wedding cocktail right now is the Margarita — you can do so much with this cocktail, to add different flavours and personalise it, so it’s perfect!

What do you supply? Are there any other costs, associated with your service, that couples should be aware of?

For our BYO packages, the only thing that couples need to organise is the drinks, then we supply everything else, including the ice and cocktail garnishes. And, if they book one of our inclusive beverage packages we take care of everything!

Kaceymaree Photography

How many guests can you cater for and how many bar staff are provided?

We have catered weddings with up to 200 guests! We provide a minimum of two staff for each event, and increase staff numbers depending on beverage menus and numbers of guests attending.

What makes your service unique?

Our bespoke mobile bars are a standout and we bring the best vibes to every event! Alex and I love what we do, we love weddings and our number one goal for any event is to make sure our couples have the best time! We also guarantee to always make sure they have a drink in their hands, as we know how hard it can be to get to the bar on the big day!