The Ashes is one of just a few no corkage wedding venues, we give you the option to supply your own daytime drinks and we do not apply a corkage charge.
What is Corkage?
Corkage is very common, it is a charge applied when you choose to supply your own wedding drinks at many other wedding venues. The corkage charge covers the costs associated with the service of your drinks, the waiters, glassware and any breakages. As it’s normally charged ‘per bottle’ it can be a significant cost at a wedding.
Right from the start, the owners of The Ashes decided they didn’t want to charge corkage; instead they chose to offer couples the option to supply their own drinks with no corkage and offer an extremely competitively priced drinks service as an alternative.
Do I Have to Supply Drinks at my Wedding?
It is your happy duty as the Bride and Groom to provide some celebratory daytime drinks for your guests. That’s drinks for your wedding reception staight after your ceremony and drinks to accompany the wedding breakfast meal but it’s up to you how you supply the drinks; there are 3 ways to supply your wedding drinks at The Ashes:
Supply Your Own
At no corkage wedding venues you are welcome to supply your own drinks for both the drinks reception and your wedding breakfast meal without incurring any corkage or service fee.
Bespoke Drinks Package
Design your own drinks package; choose your perfect combination of delicious drinks at discounted prices available through The Cellar, supplied in just the right quantity.
Order from The Cellar
You can choose from the exceptional selection of discounted drinks available from The Cellar; this hand-picked selection is available to order direct from The Ashes on a sale or return basis.
What Drinks Should I Serve at the Reception?
When thinking about what to serve at your drinks reception consider that most of your guests will be ready for a drink; that’s great and your reception drinks should kick start your celebrations but if you serve very strong drinks to thirsty guests you may end up with some exceedingly tipsy guests a little too early in the proceedings!
You’ve put your heart and soul into selecting an amazing wedding breakfast menu, it’d be a shame if half your guests were too giddy to enjoy it.
That’s why the classics work so well; a glass of bubbly, a nice fruity Pimms, a bottled beer, they take the edge off and help guests relax without getting them too inebriated!
What Drinks Should I Serve at the Wedding Breakfast?
A glass of wine enjoyed with a delicious meal is one of life’s pleasures. It’s always nice to supply some red and white wine but don’t necessarily assume a 50 / 50 split is best. A lot will depend on the food you have chosen for your wedding breakfast, although there are always some guests who’ll prefer white wine, many will opt for red wine if you’ve chosen a hearty, meaty, dish like beef wellington. Think about the season and your menu and do your best to plump for a sensible split.
If you know some of the chaps will want to drink beer throughout the meal, it’s no problem, just pop a little notice on the table advising guests to request a beer from the waiting staff if that’s their preference. The beer and ales are always best kept int he kitchens as they take up too much room on the tables otherwise.
What Toast Drinks Should I Serve?
A glass of bubbly is the traditional toast drink but that doesn’t mean it has to be champagne. The Cellar offers a fantastic range of sparkling wines, processco and fine champagnes to suit any budget.
If you are thinking of splashing out on some champagne it’s probably best to serve it at the drinks reception before guests are too tipsy or laughing too hard at the speeches to appreciate it!
Thank you to the wonderful Claire Basiuk for sharing these fabulous photos of Sarah and Toby’s scrumptious May wedding at The Ashes.
Claire Basiuk Photography
Click the image to see more.
Want to visit The Ashes?
If you’d like to visit The Ashes no corkage barn wedding venue in Staffordshire, we’d love to hear from you.
One of our experienced Event Managers will give you a guided tour of The Ashes and talk you through its features; they’ll be plenty of time for you to ask questions and get some expert advice and top tips for planning a wedding.
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