This guide is for couples planning the drinks for a Prague wedding: what to pour for the toast, whether Czech sparkling wine is good enough (often it is), how Sekt, Champagne and Crémant differ, which Moravian wines suit a wedding dinner, and how much to order per guest.
Krótka odpowiedź
- For the toast, a dry Czech sparkling wine made by the traditional method (look for brut and tradiční metoda or “fermented in the bottle”) gives you a local choice at a fraction of the price of Champagne.
- Watch the sweetness. The best-selling Czech sparkling wine is a demi-sec, which is noticeably sweet. Most international guests expect brut.
- About 96% of Czech vineyards are in Moravia. Its dry whites (Grüner Veltliner, Riesling, Welschriesling, Sauvignon) and reds (Frankovka, St. Laurent, Zweigelt) suit a wedding dinner well.
- Rule of thumb: one 750 ml bottle gives 6–8 toast glasses. Order about one bottle of sparkling wine per 6–8 guests for the toast alone, and about half a bottle of wine per drinking guest for dinner.
- If you bring your own, ask the venue about corkage first. Published corkage in Prague is roughly CZK 100–550 per bottle.
Sekt, Champagne, Crémant: what the words mean
| On the label | What it is | Typical style |
|---|---|---|
| Champagne | Sparkling wine from the Champagne region of France, made by the traditional method (second fermentation in the bottle) | Dry (brut) to sweet; the benchmark, and the most expensive |
| Crémant | Under EU rules, a white or rosé quality sparkling wine with a protected designation of origin, made to set conditions including hand-harvesting; best known from French regions such as Alsace, Burgundy and the Loire | Traditional method, often very good value |
| Sekt | The everyday Czech (and German) word for sparkling wine. On Czech labels, “šumivé víno” means sparkling wine; “sekt s.o.” is quality sparkling wine from a defined wine region | Anything from simple tank-fermented to fine bottle-fermented |
| Tradiční metoda / kvašeno v lahvi | Traditional method: fermented a second time in the bottle you buy | Finer bubbles, more complex flavour |
| Charmat / tank method | Second fermentation in a large tank before bottling | Fresher and fruitier, usually cheaper |
Sweetness terms
Sparkling wine labels use the same sweetness words across Europe. For a wedding toast with guests from abroad, these are the ones that matter:
- Brut (and Extra Brut, Brut Nature): dry. The safe choice for most guests.
- Extra Dry / Extra Sec: slightly off-dry, despite the name.
- Sec and Demi-sec: noticeably sweet. Good with wedding cake, less so as an aperitif.
Czech sparkling wine: Bohemia Sekt and beyond
The best-known Czech brand is Bohemia Sekt, produced in Starý Plzenec near Plzeň with grapes from South Moravia. According to Radio Prague’s report on the winery, most of its wine is made by the tank method, and its best-seller at home is the sweet demi-sec. The Prestige range is fermented in the bottle; the Prestige Brut is aged on the lees for 15–18 months according to its retail description, and costs roughly CZK 280–450 a bottle in Czech shops in 2026.
Many Moravian wineries also make small quantities of traditional-method sekt. These rarely appear in supermarkets but are often on the lists of better Prague restaurants and wine shops. If you want something genuinely local for the toast, ask your venue or a Prague wine shop which Moravian sekt they recommend, and taste it before you order for the whole party.
Is Champagne worth it?
For a toast where everyone drinks one glass, most guests will not notice the difference between a good Czech traditional-method sekt or a Crémant and an entry-level Champagne. They will notice the bill. In Czech retail, well-known Champagne houses cost roughly CZK 900–1,500 per bottle, and venue list prices are higher. A good compromise many couples use:
- Czech sekt or Crémant for the welcome drink and the toast.
- One or two bottles of Champagne for the couple and the head table, or for the cake.
Moravian wines for the wedding dinner
About 96% of the registered vineyards in the Czech Republic are in Moravia, in four subregions: Znojmo, Mikulov, Velké Pavlovice and Slovácko. Bohemia, around Mělník and Litoměřice, has less than 4%. Prague itself has a few small historic vineyards, including the St. Wenceslas Vineyard below Prague Castle, which hosts weddings at Villa Richter.
| Grape (Czech name) | Style | With food |
|---|---|---|
| Grüner Veltliner (Veltlínské zelené) | Fresh, dry white with a peppery note | A safe white for most wedding menus |
| Riesling (Ryzlink rýnský) | Dry to off-dry, high acidity | Fish, poultry, Asian flavours |
| Welschriesling (Ryzlink vlašský) | Light, crisp | Starters, welcome drink |
| Sauvignon | Aromatic, dry | Goat cheese, salads, vegetarian dishes |
| Pálava | Aromatic, often with some sweetness | Dessert, or for guests who like sweeter wine |
| Frankovka (Blaufränkisch) | Medium-bodied red, fruity, peppery | Duck, pork, beef |
| Svatovavřinecké (St. Laurent) | Soft, dark-fruited red | Duck, game, Czech roast dishes |
| Zweigelt (Zweigeltrebe) | Easy-drinking red | A crowd-pleaser for mixed tastes |
Czech labels also show the sweetness of still wine: suché (dry), polosuché (medium-dry), polosladké (medium-sweet), sladké (sweet). For a dinner with international guests, choose mostly dry wines and add one off-dry white for those who prefer it.
Ask your caterer or venue for a tasting of two or three whites and two reds from their list. Most venues that offer a menu tasting will add the wines on request.
How much to order
These are planning rules of thumb, not fixed rules. Adjust them for your guests: a party of wine lovers drinks more, and a family with many children and non-drinkers less.
| Moment | Per bottle (750 ml) | For 40 guests |
|---|---|---|
| Toast only (one glass of about 100–125 ml) | 6–8 guests | 5–7 bottles |
| Welcome drink after the ceremony (one to two glasses) | 3–4 guests | 10–14 bottles |
| Wine with a 3–4 hour dinner | About half a bottle per drinking guest | About 20 bottles (for example 12 white, 8 red) |
| Evening and dancing | Depends on the bar; beer and spirits take over | Agree a package or pay by consumption |
Order a little more than you need for the toast. A guest who misses the toast because the bottles ran out is worse than three bottles left over. Ask the venue whether unopened bottles can be returned or taken home.
Venue packages, corkage and bringing your own
Most Prague restaurants and hotels price drinks in one of three ways: a drinks package per person for a set number of hours, payment by consumption, or a minimum spend. Some let you bring your own wine and charge corkage per bottle; on published price lists this is roughly CZK 100–550 per bottle, with wine usually cheaper than spirits. Others do not allow it at all. Our Prague wedding cost guide has typical drinks and corkage prices.
Questions to ask the venue or caterer:
- Which sparkling wines are on your list, and are they brut or demi-sec?
- Can we bring our own wine, and what is the corkage per bottle?
- Who chills it, and are there enough flutes for everyone at once?
- Is the toast wine included in the drinks package or charged separately?
- Can we taste the wines at the menu tasting?
- What happens to unopened bottles?
You can find caterers who work at Prague venues in our catering directory.
Bringing Champagne or wine from home
Within the EU, there is no customs limit on alcohol for personal use, but guide levels apply: 90 litres of wine, of which no more than 60 litres sparkling. Above that, customs may ask whether the wine is for personal use. Flying in from outside the EU, the duty-free allowance is much smaller: 4 litres of still wine plus 2 litres of sparkling or fortified wine (shared with spirits), per adult. Large quantities of wine from outside the EU are usually cheaper to buy in Prague than to declare. Airline baggage rules also apply, so check your carrier’s limits.
Plan the drinks for your Prague wedding
Tell us your guest count, venue and the style you like, and we can help you compare drinks packages, arrange a tasting and get the toast right. Start with the planner.
Źródła
- Radio Prague International: the story of Bohemia Sekt (production methods, demi-sec, South Moravian grapes)
- Rohlik.cz: Bohemia Sekt Prestige Brut product description and price
- National Wine Centre (Vinařské centrum): wine regions of the Czech Republic (vineyard areas as of 31 December 2023)
- Wines of Moravia and Bohemia (Wine Fund): example of the “sekt s.o.” label category
- Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33, Article 53 (traditional method, Crémant)
- European Union, Your Europe: alcohol allowances for travellers
Checked against these sources in November 2026. Retail prices change often; quantities are planning estimates, so confirm with your venue.
