Guests who drink too much???

If you have concerns I guess you could ask the bar staff to cut people off if they look like they've had one too many.

Well, you could do some sort of drink tickets if you want to limit people's drinks. As far as the band goes, NO vendors should be dirnking on the job, your band included. Provide them with a pitcher of soft drinks or iced tea and call it a night.

Most bar tenders know when to cut people off, so if there is someone serving alcohol, they will handle any unruly people. If not, then you as the hosts are responsible for handling anyone who is out of control. Ultimately, you are responsible to see that no one is hurt and no property damaged at the venue anyhow.

As far as adding that to any kind of communications, be it invitations or otherwise; completely inappropreate. People should know how to behave at a wedding.If you are THAT worried, don't invite them IMO.

Thanks for all the input! I'd never heard of the drink ticket thing before....is that something thats done often at weddings?

Adding to Analys note that "you are responsible to make sure no one is hurt and no property is damagaed at the venue".. your liability does not stop once they leave the venue if you provide to much alcohol to someone and then allow them to leave your venue behind the wheel .. you could be held legally responsible for anything that may happen... Cutting the bar off at a certain time or just making sure you have a responsible bartender are great ideas.. I like the drink ticket idea too.. we just that for fund raisers you pay x amount of dollars to get in and it includes two drinks and we give you the drink tickets... but you still will need to keep an eye out for the frat boy who requests the tickets from non drinking guests.. could potential get a little too much.

Yes, drink tickets are passed from non-drinkers to drinkers, so that may not solve your problem. Have a paid, experienced bartender.

We did the drink tickets at our rehearsal but didn't really think about doing in at the wedding. As we were leaving the wedding I didn't even know until our photographer's pics came in but people were at the beer keg, being lifted in the air by others and they were drinking from the nozzle upside down!!! I was like "when was this happening", lol!

An experienced bartender knows when to cut someone off.

Also, everyone is right, your vendors should not be drinking, they are on the job.

Go w/ having bartenders cutting people off. I'm sure they'll be sneaky people that get others to get drinks for them though. I'm having an open hosted bar, but planning on shutting down alcohol about 1-1.5 hrs before end of reception for any of those that might have drank too much.

OK We're having this problem too because our friends our drunks and our families don't like people who drink too much and I don't want them acting like butt heads at my wedding.

We're having beer and wine and I'm basically BRIBING my friends to behave. Our wedding is a weekend that falls right before a holiday weekend, so I've made a deal with my friends that if they can behave and police each other so they all behave, I'll donate the left over beer to a party for them over Memorial Day weekend.

It's kinda sad to have to bribe your friends, but if it keeps everyone behaving, I'm willing to do it!

Is there a tasteful way to basically say 'please don't turn my reception into your drunken frat house'?'

Unfortunately, "tasteful" is incompatible with "effective" in this matter. Those who are inclined to turn a wedding reception into a drunken frat house are unlikely to be deterred by any sign you put up.

I would discuss your concerns with the bartender. Although the bartender is supposed to be cutting people off if they have had too much to drink, that tends to be a fairly amorphous standard. Something that is not "too much" legally for someone going home with a designated driver may still be more than enough to make your reception feel like a drunken frat party. If the bartender knows of your concerns, s/he is more likely to resolve such issues in favor of tastefulness.

Legally, a bartender must cut someone off if they appear to be visibly intoxicated.