Hi All.
Obviously the details of masonic law are a matter for each GL separately, but I'm aware that some US GLs take a very strong line against alcohol.
Certainly, however, there is no universal principle in freemasonry against alcohol. I don't know of any jurisdiction which allows alcohol inside the Lodge room itself, but non-US jurisdictions rarely try to legislate about drinking outside the meeting.
Here in England, for example, almost every Lodge has a Festive Board with alcohol after every meeting. And usually the Brethren spend some time in the bar between the meeting and the Festive Board. And some will go back to the bar after the Festive Board. And in most cases (although not at our HQ), the bar is inside the masonic building. Similarly in Scotland, once the Brethren leave the actual meeting, most of them head straight to the bar, and alcohol is available throughout the Harmony. And in both England and Scotland, there is no prescribed limit on the amount of alcohol served, a Brother is usually free to buy as much as he wants.
Of course we are all subject to the general requirement to avoid conduct unbecoming a Mason, but the British GLs (and most other non-US GLs) leave it up to the individual Brother to decide how much alcohol he can handle. Drunkenness is not in itself a masonic offence over here (except in the Lodge itself, of course), if you're a reasonably well-behaved drunk. Obviously if drink leads a Brother into grossly improper conduct, then he's likely to be in a lot of trouble ... but it'd be the conduct which would be the offence, not the drunkenness. If a Brother gets roaring drunk after a meeting, yet nevertheless manages to get home afterwards without disturbing the peace, then his only problem is how he will feel when he wakes up.
It's a mystery to me why most of the US GLs are so strict about alcohol. I appreciate that after the Morgan affair, exceptional measures were taken to make a point of looking ultra-respectable in rather strait-laced times. But that was a very long time ago, and hardly anyone outside freemasonry even knows of it now. How come those special measures are still in place? What harm would it do to masonry to let the Brethren have a refreshing beer after working a long ceremony? Frankly, if I visit a Lodge where the Brethren don't want to enjoy a sociable drink together after the meeting, then I'm likely to assume that they're a rather stuffy and boring crowd.
T & F,
Huw