Signature Drink for a 1920s/30s Wedding?

Martini?

Manhattan? Cosmopolitan?

A good ol Cosmo. Girls will love it, and guys will drink anything that they are given.

I'd go with a gin drink over a vodka drink, since you're doing 20's/30's.

What about an old fashioned?

My issue with many drinks being recommended is that a lot of them are very strong. If people had 4 drinks, one an hour, they would end up having 8+ shots. Now this is assuming people are only drinking 1 per hour, and that your reception is only 4 hours.

FRENCH 75 with Brandy! My fave.

ETA - take the classic recipe and replace the gin with blackberry brandy. It's amazing.

We had 3 signature drinks:

Stockholm Royale (with most of the ingredients made in advance)

Vodka Gimlet

Starry Night (actually a "black mourning" with guiness and champagne)

One of the Chamber of Commerce committees I'm on just did a big 1920s/30s themed party. The venue (which also hosts lots of weddings) suggested a mint julep and the bees knees drink as signature drinks...both were delicious!

Thanks for the suggestions so far! I haven't heard of anybody doing a French 75 with blackberry brandy instead of gin. I might have to try that out!

Bee's Knees - gin, lemon, honey.

ETA: holy shit, proof I didn't read. So.... I like your initial thought.

PS, all of these can be pre-mixed and even barrel aged

I would LOVE to see a Singapore Sling at a wedding, how awesome!

What about a Kir Royale for a second option? Or just a champagne cocktail with bitters & sugar?

A signature champagne cocktail.

I found some good ones on a site called Prohibition Cocktails (rewriting it to avoid copyright issues and to make it simpler, lol) -- Prohibition in the US was the law between 1920 - 1933 (which gave the bootleggers a lot of time to build their "pensions", lol).

1. French 75: The primary alcohol is champagne (6 parts). That's added to 3 parts gin, 1.5 parts lemon juice, and a dash (1/8 of a teaspoon) of simple syrup (sugar water that dissolves easily). It's very similar to a modern Tom Collins. Combine gin, syrup, and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a champagne glass. Top with Champagne. Stir gently. Serve in a champagne flute.

2. "Southside": The Primary alcohol is gin. Combine two ounces of gin, once ounce of lemon juice, and one ounce of simple syrup. You'll also need five mint leaves. In a shaker, gently combine the mint and lemon juice. Add the remaining ingredients and fill with ice. Shake, and strain into a Martini glass. Garnish with a mint sprig or lemon twist.

3. Sidecar: Cognac, Cointreau and lemon juice, in a 3-2-1 ratio that’s shaken and served up (they said this one packs a punch).

4. Mary Pickford (named after the huge star of the twenties, often referred to as "America's Sweetheart"): White rum, fresh pineapple juice, maraschino liqueur and grenadine. Combine six parts white rum, six parts pineapple juice, one part grenadine, and one part maraschino. Shake, strain, and pour into a large cocktail glass.

5. Bacardi Cocktail: Primary liquor is rum. Combine 2 - 3 ounces lemon or lime juice, Grenadine syrup, 1 1/2 ounces Bacardi white rum. Shake together in a mixer with ice. Strain into glass and serve. Garnish with a lime land serve in a cocktail glass.

6. High Ball: Primary liquor is whiskey (or a brown liquor). Add two ounces of whiskey to three to four ounces of club soda. The trick with high balls is to make sure that the mixer is twice the amount of the alcohol.

Thanks...that was fun.

How about a Mary Pickford - A Mary Pickford is a Prohibition Era cocktail made with white rum, fresh pineapple juice, grenadine, and Maraschino liqueur.

Mint Julep - bourbon (or some other spirit), water, crushed or shaved ice, and fresh mint

What about a Mata Hari? Very reminiscent of the speakeasy era (and who doesn't love a femme fatale?)

1 1/4 ounce Remy Martin

1 ounce Sweet Vermouth

3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice

3/4 (13.5 ounce cans) pomegranate juice

1/2 ounce simple syrup

Thanks guys! The Mary Pickford sounds like it might be a really good option! I'll have to give it a trial run.

The French75 with blackberry brandy instead of gin is AMAZING. Long story short, I drank about 10 of them and started talking to Kevin Costner about oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico. They were probably the most delicious thing ever. We have a fancy prohibition era bar nearby.

I am ALL on board with the French 75!!!