We Don’t Drink, Should We Have a Dry Sober Wedding?
With wedding celebrations, often comes the image of endlessly-flowing champagne, crafted cocktails, and glasses of wine raised in a toast to the bride and groom. What if, no matter the reason, you don’t drink alcohol? It doesn’t make your wedding any less momentous or the day any less joyous, but choosing whether or not to extend that to all of your guests can be tough. So… should you? Our experts weigh in on how choosing to abstain from alcohol can affect your wedding day.
No matter why you don’t drink, from religious beliefs to health concerns to simply a personal choice, you will have to decide whether your personal practices will affect your entire wedding. If you are from a family that doesn’t drink or the majority of your community follows the same practices, the decision is easy: most of you don’t drink, so there’s no need to serve any type of alcoholic beverage.
It becomes a little more tricky if you tend to be in the minority in terms of your alcohol consumption (say, your parents are wine collectors but you choose to abstain for health reasons). Of course, you should never ever feel pressured to drink “because it’s your wedding,” but if you think that most of your guests will miss the booze, you might consider offering a limited selection, like one red and one white wine, and then choosing to toast with a signature cocktail or your favorite non-alcoholic beverage.
Nervous that your guests might be put off by the idea of a wedding with little or no alcohol? Consider choosing a reception style that makes the lack of drinks almost unnoticeable. Possibly by having a morning reception or a desserts-only reception where you could have waiters tray-pass champagne for toasts, but focus on coffees and teas to go along with the sweets.
Chances are, you’ve already heard that weddings are more fun when people have been drinking. That’s up for debate and the outcome is different with every group of guests. Make sure to put the focus on the parts of the wedding you’re really invested in. Want people to dance? A great band or DJ will get the job done even if the crowd is sober. Really focused on the food? Some might miss the wine, but the amazing meal will be unforgettable!
