I just wondered what everyone is doing in reference to drinks for your guests? I am intending to buy wine from the bar to go on tables, I was thinking one bottle of red and one bottle of white, that would be between eight people... do you think that would be enough? Also the ceremony is being held in a different place to the venue, it is just literally room hire, were basically left to our own devices. I was thinking of buying champagne to serve straight after the ceremony but now I am left with lots of questions in my head.. such as who will serve it, where am I going to get the glasses from, how am I going to keep it cold?? So although it would be nice it does seem like a bit of a hassle! Do you think it would be unreasonable to expect guests to wait until the reception to be provided with drinks.. i.e the wine on the table? I think I can arrange arrival drinks at the reception, but then again that will cost a fair bit and were on a very tight budget :( Really wish I had the money to have a free bar and spoil my guests rotten! Opinions on what you think would be best please? I'm really interested to know what others are doing :) Thanks Xx
CommentAuthorAdrienneP83
I am in a bit of a pickle about drinks because I was planning on buying all the drinks my self but then people told me that wasn't tradition and that I shouldn't do that, so now I am confused..... However I think defently the wine on the table would do. Not really sure about the other part as I live in France and we are having the reception in the same place. Hope that helps... not sure it does thought :P xxx
CommentAuthorZoeC
I don't think its unreasonable for them to wait. I'm getting married at a different venue to the reception and i'm not supplying any drinks until they arrive at the reception. Have you asked your venue what their prices are for arrival drinks, it might not be as expensive as you think or could you supply the champagne/pimms and then they serve it for you? They might charge you a corkage fee but this would be less than buying direct? xx
CommentAuthorFinally Susan B
I think the timing make a difference - ie how long it is that people need to go without a drink etc. Our ceremony was at registry office and they ban any food/drink there - so we had no choice in the matter. We did arrange a welcome bucks fizz drink on arrival at the reception venue which was about 2 hours after start of ceremony. We arranged for the bar to be open at the same time and a few chose to buy different drinks and not have the fizz we had supplied.
so.. I think people can wait until they reach your reception venue - if you can't afford a reception drink, have the bar open so they can at least buy one - if your photos take a bit longer or someone is missing for receiving line or anything, it can be a while before they sit down to your meal - also some may not drink wine at all so bar open is a good call i think.
CommentAuthorMrs C to be!
We are having everything at the same venue, but I feel that we should be supplying some drinks for our guests. So I'm doing prosecco/ champagne with canapés, after ceremony, whilst we are having photos. 2 bottles of white, and 2 of red per table of 8. If you think when you serve a glass of wine, generally you only get 4 glasses to a bottle, I personally feel a bit bad about only putting 1 of each on the tables. And then a glass of champagne to toast. Otherwise its a cash bar. Ad this is all I can afford to do, but I think is enough. Don't know if that helps.
I think you need to have more than 2 bottles for a table. You only get 4 glasses out of a bottle, which is only 187 ml (the size of the mini bottles). But no-one ever pours that little into a glass when they're pouring their own. So you'd end up with some people getting full glasses, and others left with a dribble in the bottom. Our package comes with a glass per person, but it's poured by the venue, so everyone will get the same. If its only room hire, and you aren't limited by bar prices, you can get good offers in the supermarkets which would make it cheaper. Even if you just had a bottle of white, red and rose, if means everyone could have a 250ml glass each.
CommentAuthorCamillaB
I dont think its rude to wait for drinks intill the guests get to your recepetion venue. as for on the tables, i am having 8 guests around each table and are putting 2 bottles of wine, one white and one rose... they will all get atleast one glass and then champagne to toast. otherwise they will have to buy drinks from the bar.
CommentAuthorLauraJo87
We are having pimms and lemonade after the ceromony, half a bottle of red or white wine per person with the wedding breakfast and champagne for the toast - but there is also a cash bar throughout. I think this is fairly standard with in-house venue drinks packages.
I'd probably go for two red and two white per table as a minimum - one each between eight won't be enough four everyone to get a glass, realistically.
I wouldn't see a problem with waiting til the reception for a drink, however there should be an option of somewhere to purchase a drink, particularly of they will be hanging around whilst you have photos done etc xx
My Beating Heart Belongs To You
30 August 2013
The First Day Of My Happily Ever After
CommentAuthorMrsCross2be
We are having a Kir Royale after the ceremony during pictures and then its free flowing red/ white/ rose during the meal with prosecco to toast (except the top table). Could you make a punch bowl or something which could be made in advance and guests serve themselves. Or nominate someone in the bridal party i.e an usher who doesnt have another role to play to pour the champagne?
CommentAuthor*KelBel*
We are providing pimms as a welcome drink and champagne as a toast drink. We're not providing wine on the tables because from my personal experience of the weddings I've been to as an adult (which is about 3a year since the age of 20,I'm now 28), there's normally only 3-4 ppl on a table of 8 that will drink it so they end up drunk quickly and get louder and it means the ppl who don't drink wine miss out, so we're just telling ppl to buy drinks from the bar...we've spent more on excellent food rather than drinks x
Velcro...my wedding day twinny! The Two Kel's!
Got engaged 14/10/12 in Central Park NYC!
Became Mrs Macdonald 13th September 2014
Mummy to 4 girlies and baby blue boy Due 10/05/2016
CommentAuthorhis duck
We are having
Pimm's and corona fir drinks reception
Wine on tables
Cups of tea/coffee/hot chocolate fir toast as the cups are part of wedding favours:-D
We only have about40-50 guests for this part tho xx
Is a very lucky girl :)
CommentAuthorclive
How many bottles of Pimms are you buying/Serving? We have the same amount of guests.
CommentAuthorhis duck
I don't know :-/ leaving that upto venue but they are very reasonable with costs xx
I know when im making it (strong) half a bottle does a good sized jug I measure it like two shots to a long glass.
Is a very lucky girl :)
CommentAuthorclive
Is that a litre bottle or 70cl bottle though?
CommentAuthorSillybirds
We have a package that provides a glass of wine per guest at the table, and then a glass of sparkly to toast. If they want other drinks there is a bar so they can buy themselves. We are giving them a three course meal in a top hotel so the least they can do is buy their own drinks!!!! tee hee hee xx
Future Mrs Chick!!!
CommentAuthorhis duck
Lol erm?? A normal sized one??!!
I'm not being much help am I?
Also from experience people like it diffrrnt strenghts its a bit like cordial.
Or this may just be our family?! Mum likes it weak I like it strong......
Don't forget the cucumber lol
Is a very lucky girl :)
CommentAuthorclive
Lol, I won't :-)
CommentAuthorsita_meena
we're having a welcome cocktail, then 2 glasses per guest for the meal, then champagne toast
CommentAuthorsarah
Jessica all the big supermarkets offer free glass hire, with a small deposit. The big orange shop requires a £20 deposit. They will also offer advice for how much to order and how to keep it cold on the day.
CommentAuthorMrsH-2B
We're having 'arrival' drinks and canapes after the ceremony and photo's are done, 3 bottles of wine per table and glass of prosecco for the toast.. xxx
I can't wait to become his Wife :-)
4th July 2015
CommentAuthorBennyboy :-)
We're having Buck's Fizz for arrivals,champagne for the toast and putting 3 bottles of wine on each table (one white,one rose,one red) x
CommentAuthorSonya
we're having arrival drinks, 1 glass with the meal then fizz for the toast.
The main reason we're not putting wine on the table is I saw what happened at my brother's wedding. Not everyone drinks it so some people drank loads and ended up pretty drunk after the meal and then others (maybe me) were going round the other tables that hadn't drank the wine and asking if they weren't drinking it would they mind if our table did (naughty sister!)
Anyway we decided we weren't going to pay for bottles as a lot wouldn't have been drank by the people it was intended for.
Became Mrs Mulholland on September 12th 2014!!!
CommentAuthorMrsManiatt
we are providing a welcome drink and a drink for the toast, but that is it. At my sisters wedding there was a free bar with my dad paying for all drinks, and we ended up with an ambulance and a riot van showing up because people got overly drunk and started acting stupid, hence why we are only providing a few drinks, and i've told my dad not to buy drinks for everyone. I know not everyone drinks alot, but sometimes its better to err on the side of caution xxx
CommentAuthorLauraJo87
Oh yeah, I would like to provide ALL the drinks....
We are only having 43 to the day do, close friends and family only, and we're pretty sure that they won't take the pee - I've been to weddings where too much drink has been provided and it just gets messy.
Our venue don't put bottles on the table for some of the reasons above - some people end up getting loads, some people end up getting hardly any at all xx
My Beating Heart Belongs To You
30 August 2013
The First Day Of My Happily Ever After
CommentAuthorJessicaW22
Thanks for the replies all, you've certainly helped :) Think I'm going to scrap the drinks after the ceremony, the majority of guests can scoot on to the reception immediately after the ceremony, it will only be close family and bridal party that will be needed for photos. Going to talk to the reception venue and find out how much arrival drinks are, they may not be as much as I think, hopefully! Ref wine on the tables, think I'll up it to three bottles (where the table is made up of all adults). There's a cash bar there so people can buy there own if they don't want the wine/welcome drinks. Thanks all :)
CommentAuthorLauraT41
Were having champagne for the welcome drink and toast and per table of 8 were having three bottles of wine ( white, red & rose) plus lemonade for the kids.
i don't think that it would be unreasonable for your guests to wait until the venue to get a drink, from recent experience with my friends wedding she had pimms provided very reasonably for the welcome drink by the venue - most places will do something for your budget its just about negotiation :) x
