Ceremony & reception details

My fiance and i don’t want too much alcohol at the reception but my maid of honour thinks that its being stingy. How do we politely say that just a few bottles of alcohol will be enough?

Unfortunately a lot of people use weddings as an excuse to get plastered. I think that limiting the booze especially if your families get out of hand can be a good thing. The guests may be annoyed though…

I would just limit the types of alcohol you serve rather than the amount. For example only serve light beer, wine and no spirits.

Suddenly stopping the alcohol is a bit rude and telling people that there will only be say 3 bottles per table could mean that some miss out entirely especially if someone hides/hoards it for their own consumption.

It is also perfectly acceptable to have a dry wedding which might be a better option for you.

Serve a sparkling non alcholic wine for the toasts, have a fruit punch or mock tails instead.

Don’t let anyone pressure you to serve alcohol if you don’t want it.

I don’t think it’s rude or stingy at all to limit the amount of alcohol you’re serving your guests. Key terms here being YOU’RE and GUESTS.

First of all, I think most people know that if they’re not paying, they don’t get to complain. 

But more importantly, these people have been invited to attend and witness one of the most important occasions of your life. They’ll be aware that being invited to attend your wedding is an honour, not a right, and the greater majority of your guests will have a fantastic time and be greatful for the invitation regardless of how much alcohol you serve. The people who think it’s stingy are being rude. 

My brother served unlimited soft drink, one bottle of scotch, one bottle of Midori, and 4 bottles of champage, for 80 guests at his wedding. Once it was gone, it was gone. I was a bridesmaid and I didn’t get an alcoholic drink other than my glass of champagne for the toasts! No one thought it was rude or stingy at all. For our wedding we are matching wines to our meals and they will be served to guests at the table, otherwise people will have a choice of two tap beers or soft drink on the bar tab. Spirits or other wines will be entirely at their own expense, and once our set amount on the bar runs out, people will be paying for their own drinks.

At the end of the day you have to remember that this is YOUR wedding, you get to do what you want, not what other people expect.

I don’t think you have to say anything at all about it. Just have plenty of soft drink or juice or punch available for when/if the alcohol runs out.

Your right Emzor the key terms are Your Guests- as in you are hosting these people who have given up their time (a saturday/sunday/fri) to wittness your wedding.

It stops being You and your fiances Wedding(as opposed to Your Wedding)  once you invite people.

Why should guests be grateful to be invited to a wedding? Is it some block buster hot ticket event?

Brides and Grooms should be grateful that guests have chosen to give up their day to attend the B&G’s wedding. The reception is a thank you to those guests who came to the ceremony and as such the B&G should host appropriately.

Gosh j_jaye, I can’t agree with your opinion. 

I disagree with the implication that to be invited to a wedding is an inconvenience. It shouldn’t be. An invitation is just that, an invitation. You’re the one who puts the obligation on yourself when you agree to attend. No one forces the guests to say yes. That’s why most response cards say “thanks for the invitation”.

But I do agree with the concept of hosting, and being an event manager I understand the importance of ensuring the guests you invite to an event have a comfortable and enjoyable time. I will also give you that if you invite your guests to a dinner reception, you should probably provide dinner, which generally includes a bevarage of some kind. I firmly believe however that the type, quantity, quality and time of supply however is up to the person who is paying.

at the end of the day its up to you and your future husband. it doesnt matter what u decide because you cant keep everyone happy. most packages ive seen have a few types of wine and beer, soft drink, juice and tea and coffee. but do what u feel is best for you, especially if u think a few people might take advantage. but if you are having limits on your alcohol maybe mention it to your parents and family, just so people wont be upset when they get to the reception expecting to have a beer or wine etc. we are attending a wedding soon and the ceremony is at 10.30 in the morning and the reception starts at 2 in the afternoon and there was no mention of what food etc will be served so we really dont know what we are in for….its always best to give your guests the heads up thou

My fiance’s best friend only put money behind the bar for the bridal party. It’s fair enough, particularly if you’re concerned about certain people drinking too much or you’re having a low budget wedding.

 Ever since FH mentioned it, the idea has become more and more appealing because we ARE having a low budget wedding and we ARE concerned about the agressive behaviour of a few particular guests when they drink too much alcohol, so if we feel we can’t afford it then that’s what we’ll do.