The Truth Bar

Sure you want your guests to enjoy themselves at your wedding
reception, but if you don’t want to break the bank or the law
here’s what you will need to know, including how to calculate
how much to buy.

Unquestionably, one of the hottest topics that must be dealt
with when planning a wedding reception is whether to have an
open bar or a cash bar. Why does this particular topic tend to
be so controversial?

Well, for one thing, some people will tell you that it would be
rude to invite guests to your reception, then ask them to pay
for their own drinks. On the other hand, an open barat which
your guests drink for free, perhaps into the wee hours of the
morning if they last that longcould leave you with a bill that
will forever remain etched in your memory.

Both points of view are well taken. It’s true that one wouldn’t
ordinarily invite people to dinner or a party with the
expectation that they will pay for what you serve. But it is
equally true that people tend to be overly indulgent, not to
mention downright wasteful, with alcohol they aren’t paying for.
They will take a sip or two, set their glass down and begin
talking, then walk away. Later, instead of returning for their
glass, they will head for the bar to order yet another drink.
So, what’s the answer?

Options, Anyone

There really isn’t a correct answer, but there are options. You
could:

*Serve free champagne punch. Since it is relatively light in
terms of alcohol content, your guests aren’t as likely to become
obnoxious, even if they’ve had more than their fair share.

*Have an open bar for the first hour or two. This approach will
prevent you from feeling, and looking, like a cheapskate but
will allow you to keep your bank account in the black.

*Have each table set to include the allocated bottles of wine or
champagne. For example, a table seating six to eight people
might be decked with two bottles of wine or champagne. Since you
can expect each bottle to hold between 4 and six glassfuls,
everyone will have one to two glasses for dinner and the toast.
(Obviously, you will want to have the toast as early as possible
to avoid an embarrassing situation in which guests will be
forced to hold up empty glasses.)

*Use the open-and-shut-case approach. This requires purchasing
beer kegs or cases of good-quality beer, plus several cases of
good-quality wine. Since you have purchased the supply in
advance, you will determine just how much is being spent on
drinks.

For guests who insist upon drinking until the cows come home or
would like something stronger, make a cash bar available.

*Have waiters and waitresses serve drinks from a tray. This
approach is not only stylish, it is also quite cost effective
because you remain in control of how much is consumed.

Choose a few different drinks to be served, including beer and
wine. Then have the staff circulate throughout the reception
area at pre-scheduled intervals. Perhaps the waiters and
waitresses might offer drinks when the reception starts, then
just before or during dinner, then a few times later in the
evening but not throughout the night. With tray service, you
guest will not pay for their drinks, but this will still be a
lot cheaper than having an open bar.

At-home Receptions

If you are planning to have your reception in a home or backyard
and you will not be using a caterer, here is what you will need
to know.

In this situation, a cash bar is simply not one of the available
choices. It is against the law to sell alcohol without a liquor
license. (You wouldn’t want to spend your honeymoon in the
pokey.)

If the home is not equipped with one, you will need a rented bar
(or a sturdy table or two, dressed to the floor or ground with
linen). Plan to stock the bar or table(s) with beer, vodka, rum,
whiskey, tequila, cordials (liqueur), brandy, gin, wine,
sparkling juice, and possibly punch.

Offering a sparkling white wine is also nice. If you are
planning to serve champagne (Although only a sparkling white
wine made in the Champagne region of France can be truly called
champagne, people often refer to any bubbly by that name.),
expect to pay more. A decent bottle (You will only disappoint
the true connoisseur, and they are a dying breed.) will cost
between $10 and $12 and will serve seven to eight glasses. Even
at these prices per bottle, you may want to reserve it for the
toast.

Borrow or shop for a bartender’s guide (Mr. Boston Deluxe
Official Bartender’s Guide, for example). For your mixologist,
you might also stock such things as lemons, limes, celery,
maraschino cherries, and olives. You’ll also want to have soda
water, tonic water, sparkling water, coke, ginger ale, and a few
other soft drinks, plus swizzle sticks and cocktail napkins,
Last, but not least, remember to have an ample supply of ice
(crushed and cubed) on hand.

Standard Guidelines for Consumption

Expect each guest to have four to five drinks at the reception.
You’ll get twenty-five drinks from a fifth of liquor, providing
you’re using a one-ounce pony to make them with one ounce of
alcohol each. Using one and a half ounces of alcohol (that is, a
one-and-a-half-ounce jigger), you’ll get eighteen drinks per
fifth of alcohol. A single case of alcohol contains twelve
bottles. Assuming that you’re using one ounce of alcohol to make
every drink, then one case will yield 300 drinks.

If you would like to serve beer on tap, half a keg will yield
260 eight-ounce glasses of beer. Seven cases of beer will yield
the same amount.

With regard to unopened bottles of alcohol, don’t be too
concerned about over stocking. It is better to have too much,
rather than not enough. Besides, unopened bottles of alcohol can
usually be returned to the store.

The Law and Your Liability

Needless to say, it is against the law to serve alcohol to
anyone under the legal drinking age. The sobering fact is that
courts have consistently ruled that restaurants, caterers, and
hosts are financially liable when minors who are served alcohol
are injured, become involved in a car accident, or break the
law.

You can also be held liable for an adult who suffers an injury,
become involved in a car accident, or step outside of the law
after drinking too much in your home. Caterers and restaurants
are subject to the same liability.

Your best protection against legal liability involving alcohol
is to plan ahead and react sensibly. If your reception is to be
catered, discuss a plan of action with the caterer before hand.
He or she undoubtedly will cooperate.

Avoid serving salty foods since they make people thirsty. Foods
high in proteinsuch as meat, fish, eggs, and cheesewill help
to keep your guests sober.

Once a person is drunk, it’s too late to reach for the pot of
coffee. Giving your happy drunk coffee will only make him or her
hyper and jittery. If you need to sober someone up, try to get
the person to drink water, which will dilute the alcohol in
their system and flush it out.

By no means, let that person driveno matter what they say.
Instead, call for a taxi or find another driver to take the
person home.

© Copyright 2005 Bachcroft.com. Permission to reprint this
article, as is, is granted as long as the proper attribution
(author’s biography) is given and all active hyperlinks remain
intact.

After about a year of planning for your wedding, you and your
fiancé have most of the major components finalized…the
catering, wedding flowers, decorations, guest favors,
photography, etc.

One of the “finishing touches” in the wedding plan is
transportation. How you arrive at the wedding and depart from
the ceremony and reception is a large part of the wedding day
celebration. Many couples choose to travel directly to the hotel
after the wedding reception or to an airport to fly off to a
distant resort. The best weddings involve creativity, unique
style and planning on the part of the couple, and transportation
is no exception.

Of all the types of wedding transportation available, a limousine
service is one of the most popular and is a classic symbol of
luxury. Most limousine services are very flexible and can offer
a chauffeur for the entire day, or just an hour or two. The
choice depends on what your wedding day involves. White
limousines are the most formal type, and although the standard
seating is 4-6, many can hold up to 12 people at a time. Of
course, in addition to a limousine, other cars can also be used
for the transporting of the wedding party or family members.
Many traditions call for the bride to ride with the father to
the church. Of course, the remaining parents and
guests/attendants would follow. How you choose to create your
wedding experience is up to you and your loved one. Here are
some quick tips to help make your bridal experience with your
loved one a romantic and memorable one.

Do some research on any prospective service to make sure it
follows the correct guidelines, and always write a contract.

Inquire whether the service is part of the National Limousine
Association (www.limo.org). More information about limousine
service vehicle guidelines can be found there.

Are you able to decorate the vehicle? According to tradition,
the groomsmen do the decorating. Of course, many wedding vehicle
decorating involves the bridesmaids, brides, parents of the
bride and others. Remember that good etiquette usually calls for
a driver gratuity.

A New Jersey Wedding Reception has much variety, elegance and
grandeur to choose from for wedding couples. This would be even
more pronounced if your budget for the wedding reception is
large enough for engaging the best wedding reception venue that
New Jersey has to offer.

It would be advisable to scout around at other New Jersey
wedding receptions in order to determine your choices. You will
then have a good idea for the theme of your wedding reception.
Do you want to host it at a prestigious city hotel? Would you
want to have a grand and romantic wedding reception held in a
manor or a mansion? How about a reception in a park with wide
spaces of lush greenery?

Whatever your choice may be, all of the above is possible for
your wedding reception in New Jersey. All of these wedding
reception locations are unique and distinctive, each of them
with their own theme and specialties. In the end, the wedding
couple should evaluate each of these venues based on their
desires, their wedding reception budget, type of food served,
service levels, ambience, elegance, decor and accessibility for
visitors.

For instance, food may be a problem as some venues may not have
the right selections, so engaging an outside caterer may be an
alternative as long as the venue management allows it. Other
elements of a New Jersey wedding that needs to be taken into
consideration would be the type of music as well as the choice
of floral arrangements, wedding cake and wedding favors for the
guests.

A wedding invitation is a letter sent to a person, asking the recipient to attend a wedding. They are typically mailed out 6 weeks before the wedding date. Wedding invitations can sometimes have fancy writing on them known as calligraphy.

Other types of printing include Engraving, Thermography, Letterpress printing and sometimes Blind Embossing. Most of time, they are mailed in double envelopes. The inner envelope can be lined in a matching color, is not gummed and fits into the outer envelope. The outer envelope is gummed for sealing and addressing.

Along with the wedding invitation, the ensemble may also include a respond card or folder and envelope. The respond card or folder is traditionally used for gathering totals for the caterer and getting a general number of guests attending. The recipient is asked to mail back the respond card or folder roughly two weeks before the wedding or by the date indicated. The envelope is pre-addressed and pre-stamped by the wedding party for ease.

Other pieces often included in the ensemble are the reception card or folder, map or direction card, and accommodation information. The reception card simply lists the addresses and times of any post-wedding events, such as a cocktail hour, dinner or dance. Map or direction cards provide details about the location of the wedding and reception.

The accommodation information gives helpful tips about airfare, transportation or hotel arrangements for out-of-town guests. Local attractions may be featured as well. Often times the accommodation information is sent in advance with the save the dates.

A save the date is similar to an invitation and is mailed up to one year before the wedding date. Save the dates simply announce that the wedding date has been set and encourages recipients to plan for the event. It is not used as a a substitute for the wedding invitation and typically mentions that an invitation will follow.

Printable wedding invitations - Enjoy information about various types of wedding invitations. Get exciting details on wedding invitation cards & much more.