A cocktail party is a

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featur ...

at which cocktails are served. It is sometimes called a cocktail reception. A cocktail party organized for purposes of

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives from ...

or business networking is called a mixer. A cocktail hour is sometimes used by managers of hotels and restaurants as a means of attracting

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

patrons between 4 pm and 6 pm. Some events, such as

wedding reception A wedding reception is a party usually held after the completion of a marriage ceremony as hospitality for those who have attended the wedding, hence the name reception: the couple ''receive'' society, in the form of family and friends, for t ...

s, are preceded by a cocktail hour. During the cocktail hour, guests socialize while

drinking Drinking is the act of ingesting water or other liquids into the body through the mouth, proboscis, or elsewhere. Humans drink by swallowing, completed by peristalsis in the esophagus. The physiological processes of drinking vary widely am ...

and eating

appetizers An hors d'oeuvre ( ; french: hors-d'œuvre ), appetiser or starter is a small dish served before a meal in European cuisine. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the m ...

. Organizers of these events use the cocktail hour to occupy guests between related events and to reduce the number of guests who arrive late. Although it has been said that the inventor of the cocktail party was

Alec Waugh Alexander Raban Waugh (8 July 1898 – 3 September 1981) was a British novelist, the elder brother of the better-known Evelyn Waugh, uncle of Auberon Waugh and son of Arthur Waugh, author, literary critic, and publisher. His first wife was Bar ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, an article in the '' St. Paul Pioneer Press'' in May 1917 credited its invention to Mrs. Julius S. Walsh Jr. of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

. Mrs. Walsh invited 50 guests to her house on a Sunday at high noon for a one-hour affair. "The party scored an instant hit," the newspaper declared, stating that within weeks cocktail parties had become "a St. Louis institution". Alec Waugh noted that the first cocktail party in England was hosted in 1924 by war artist

Christopher Nevinson Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson (13 August 1889 – 7 October 1946) was an English figure and landscape painter, etcher and lithographer, who was one of the most famous war artists of World War I. He is often referred to by his initial ...

. A German observer of English life advised its co-nationals to import the "three fundamental rules" of cocktail parties: # It should not last long, an hour and a half maximum, the time one can stand up, even if there are chairs for weaker constitutions. # Guests should enter and leave freely, avoiding elaborate greetings on arrival and departure. # Conversation must avoid passionate subjects (personal, political or religious topics) to keep a harmonious and cheerful ambiance.

Formal rules

The cocktail drinks usually start no earlier than 17:30 and no later than 19:00. The duration is usually limited to approximately two hours. The cocktail party thus takes place during normal working hours and is held before dinner. Punctuality of arrival is not expected, but punctuality of departure is. Cocktails and other alcoholic beverages are available, except for 'normal' drinks such as beer, liquor, etc. Soft drinks may also be served. Usually, no food is served, only a few snacks. The classic cocktail drink is a martini. In the UK it is also common to serve pina coladas and mojitos. For formal cocktail parties, invitations are sent out in writing one or two weeks in advance. For less formal cocktail parties, invitations are usually only invited verbally. The informal nature of the event allows the invited guest to ask if they can bring an escort if that is acceptable to the host.

Dresscodes

As a rule, gentlemen still wear their usual casual attire (office suits) because the party takes place during working hours. The same now applies to working women. For particularly formal or formal cocktail parties, men should wear a dark suit. Women who attend a cocktail party may usually wear a

cocktail dress A cocktail dress is a dress suitable at semi-formal occasions, sometimes called cocktail parties, usually in the late afternoon, and usually with accessories. After World War I, the idea of the "working woman" became popular. After 1929, it wa ...

References

{{Authority control Eating parties Drinking culture High society (social class) Upper class culture

Formal rules

Dresscodes

See also

References