Do the Amish Drink Alcohol? Some Do, but Drinking Is Discouraged



  • There is no single Amish rule on alcohol; each church district’s Ordnung decides, and drinking is strongly discouraged.
  • In a 2011 Ohio survey the Amish drank significantly less than their neighbors, and 85 percent of Amish women had never drunk alcohol.
  • The New Order Amish made tobacco, alcohol and bed courtship central issues when they separated from Old Order churches.
  • Amish communion, held each spring and autumn, uses bread and wine.
  • Most reported alcohol abuse is among some unbaptized youth during Rumspringa, and the Amish Youth Vision Project works to reduce it among Old Order youth.

Some Amish drink alcohol, but far less than their neighbors, and Amish churches discourage it. Practice differs by affiliation: New Order Amish churches set out to end drinking, while surveys in Ohio find some Amish adults who drink. Wine is served at Amish communion, and most reported heavy drinking is among young people before baptism. Are the Amish allowed to drink alcohol? There is no single Amish rule. Each church district follows its own Ordnung, the rules its members agree…

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