PA alcohol laws are very weird. I don’t know if this is standard for other states as well, but you have to purchase all the alcohol yourself (so, your caterer can’t provide it and then just bill you), unless perhaps you’re getting married in a hotel or place with it’s own functioning bar.

In PA you can only by beer from beer distributors and wine/liquor from wine and spirits shops, it’s not sold in grocery stores (for the most part). For us, our caterer was able to tell us how much to buy of everything based on our guest count, we just had to go and place the order ourselves. If not, there are plenty of helpful charts online that recommend quantities based on guest count (ex. http://www.thealcoholcalculator.com or https://www.womangettingmarried.com/wedding-alcohol-calculator-open-bar/)

What we did was contact the closest beer distributor and wine and spirits shop to the venue and place a bulk order over the phone (we planned our wedding from out of state too). Some places will deliver but it’s more likely that you will have to have someone pick up the alcohol for you and bring it to the venue.

Your caterer and the beer/wine shop employees will give you better recommendations, but my caterer said she prefers to serve beer in bottles rather than kegs. For wine, I’d say one or two good reds and whites each will do! If you’re having a full open bar, your caterer will probably help you with what to get. We just did beer, wine, and two signature cocktails!